Independence Can Be A Tricky Thing
by AegonPotter
Summary: Starting Third Year: Harry receives a letter from Dumbledore about his inheritance, due to an ancient rule of the House of Potter, Harry is forced to take up the mantle of Head of a dying house. He must learn what it means to be a Potter in the pureblood dominated society as well as dealing with consequences of his desire for freedom. Making new and strong friends along the way.
1. Chapter 1- A Summons from Dumbledore

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognise does not belong to me it belongs to the brilliant J.K. Rowling.**

 **Also from Chapter 3 onwards the chapters get longer, sorry for the short start!**

 **Chapter 1- A Summons from Dumbledore**

 _July 31_ _st_ _1993_

Harry stared at the creased letter on his rickety desk. One could be forgiven for thinking that the letter itself had been written many years ago due to the many creases that he had caused by repeatedly reading it over the past few days. For once, it was not the brutish nature of his Uncle, nor the shrill voice of his aunt that filled him with anxiety as they usually did during the summer. No. This anxiety was solely due to the contents of the letter.

He picked it up once more and read.

 _Dear Harry,_

 _My Boy, as you are aware your 13_ _th_ _Birthday will soon be occurring and it is vital I meet with you as soon as possible to discuss your inheritance from your parents. My apologies for being vague but due to the current situation a short note is best and I shall explain in full when we meet._

 _On the 31_ _st_ _of July, at 10am I ask you to walk out into Privet Drive and raise your wand straight out. A large bus will appear and you must simply state your destination and pay the fee, ask to go to the leaky cauldron and then proceed up to Gringotts to a teller and state that you are here for the 10:15 meeting with myself and Sharpclaw. I shall then explain more._

 _Yours truly and apologetically,_

 _Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore_

'What the bloody hell is on about now' Harry muttered to himself, Hedwig gave a hoot and seemed to stare at him in disapproval. He glanced over at the clock, only ten more minutes until he had to leave. 'Well I guess will soon find out' he stated, standing to get ready. His annoyance with the Headmaster of Hogwarts had been growing and growing since the end of his second year, the man refused to tell Harry the full truth of Voldemort and his connection to him and had insisted that he had to return to the Dursley's for summer. He was hoping this meeting would clarify certain issues otherwise his anger would continue to boil over.

His main fear right now was the inheritance issue Dumbledore mentioned, surely there wasn't an issue with his trust vault?; again Harry's mind clouded with anger at Dumbledore being vague as usual. In his first and second year Harry had admired the Wizard, loving the caring presence he seemed to exude yet as second year drew to a close he started to question things.

Why did Dumbledore do so little? Not only in relation to the bullying that Harry faced from his supposed peers at school but from Snape and the other teachers. Considering Hogwarts was meant to be the 'premier' magic school in Europe according to Hermione, who of course memorised it from _Hogwarts a History_ , you'd think that the staff would be more supportive and less cruel. When Hagrid had knocked down the door to the rickety shack a few years ago Harry had hoped it would be a chance to escape his miserable life and find acceptance. Of course he had been wrong.

Escaping the stifling home of his relatives was an easier task as they had left him alone whilst they went for a shopping trip to get new clothes for Dudley, according to Aunt Petunia it was the fault of the washing machine that shrunk his clothes. She never even thought that it could be because her precious "Dudders" would shovel food into his gullet at a rate that even Ron would find disgusting.

Since he didn't have to be up early to cook their breakfast he slept in a little too long as he had to abandon his half opened presents so he could leave.

Harry stepped to the pavement, quickly checking there were no muggles paying attention near-by, and raised his hand out in front of him.

 _BANG!_ A few seconds later a large purple triple-decker bus appeared in front of him sending him to the ground. Harry groaned and fixed his glasses, standing he looked at the conductor at the front.

'A'wright, names Stan Shunpike where you of't then' the pimple faced, lanky conductor asked Harry as he dusted off his jeans.

'Err the leaky cauldron, that's in London' Harry stated.

Stan snorted, 'Oh really who wud've thought', ' 'ere that Ern, Leaky Cauldron in London of all places' he continued sarcastically. He looked at Harry who merely stared him down unwilling to rise to Stan's bait.

'Sound then' he mumbled noticing Harry's unamused face 'that'll be 11 Sickles unless yer wanna bed an hot chocolate?'

Harry just handed him the 11 Sickles and went to take a seat, at least until Stand yelled 'Take 'er away Ern!' and Harry was thrown to the floor as the bus sped off as quick as a broomstick.

He managed to stabilise himself and held on to a bar, glaring at Stan.

After a turbulent 5-minute journey of Harry cursing each time he was thrown about, causing the woman near him to tut and shake her head. He finally got off the hellish Knight bus and walked into the Leaky Cauldron.

The pub itself resembled something out of a Dicken's novel, yet was always bustling with energy being the main gateway into Diagon Alley. Seeing Tom was free at the bar he walked over to ask him to open the barrier.

The barkeep smiled, 'Sure thing. Just follow me'

Harry took note of the pattern in which Tom tapped his wand on the brick wall so he did not have to ask next time.

Quickly thanking Tom, Harry walked through the barrier and made his way up the winding street, dodging the Witches and Wizards that were also in the Alley. It came to Harry that this had been the first time he had been there by himself and made sure to take note of any shops that seemed interesting. He particularly fancied a look in 'Occult Opticians' but figured it would be best to come back later.

He walked through the gates of Gringotts, trying to put on a façade of confidence as he walked past the two visible Goblin Warriors. Hagrid had always warned him about the dangers of Goblins so he thought it best to avoid staring at them.

Looking at the large golden clock that hung on the farthest wall he saw he was on time and made his way to a free Goblin.

Grumbling the Goblin demanded 'State your business young Wizard'

'I'm here to meet Albus Dumbledore and Sharpclaw' he responded in a slightly affronted at the tone.

The Goblin looked at Harry more closely, focusing on his scar.

'Name' he drawled.

'Harry Potter' he replied in a slightly lower volume. He did not want a repeat of the actions of the public like they did last year when Lockhart pulled Harry to the front to take photos for the press.

'Very well. Snazzlefoot!' the teller barked and another Goblin hurried to where Harry was standing.

'Take Mr. Potter to meeting room 5' he continued.

'Follow me Mr. Potter' the seemingly younger Goblin said, judging by the smaller number of wrinkles on his face, and walked off down a corridor.

Thankfully the walk was only short and they came to a stop in front of the meeting room.

'Well' he mumbled to himself, 'let's hope we get some fucking answers'.

He knocked on the door.

 **AN: Hey anyone who is reading this. So this is my first attempt at fanfiction and I wanted to have ago at the whole Harry becomes Lord Potter trope. But I don't want to make him ridiculously rich and powerful and master magic within 2 hours of becoming Lord Potter. Hell to the no. This will be a slower story focusing on Harry's independence and how far he will go to get that .**

 **One thing with fanfiction that annoys me is how Harry is often presented as someone who just goes a long with what everyone else is doing and rarely challenges his friend when they are in the wrong. In this you will see Harry is much easier to rile up and less likely to forgive.**

 **On Dumbledore: My feelings towards Dumbledore are complex in that fanfiction has twisted my mind to see him as this evil manipulative man who sees his way as the only way. In this that wont happen, don't get me wrong there will be elements of him acting in a way that will annoy Harry but this will not be a Dumbledore/ Hermione/ Weasley bashing fic.**

 **This story has a focus on Harry learning his place and role in society and how he reacts to such, and the friends and relationships he finds on the way.**

 **Currently pairings are undecided.**

 **Anyway, hope you'll stick around for Chapter 2 and give it a chance!**


	2. Chapter 2- Meetings & the First Step

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognise does not belong to me it belongs to the brilliant J.K. Rowling.**

 **Chapter 2- Meetings and A Step Towards Independence**

 _July 31_ _st_ _1993_

'Come in' a rough, crackled voice yelled through the door.

Bracing himself, Harry walked in.

The room was well lit with a long table down the centre. Adorning the left hand wall was a large magical painting, seemingly depicting a scene from one of the Goblin Wars that the old knobhead, Binns, droned on about in class. Glancing at the title it said _'Jahaerys the Fierce and the Clan of Frouste 1587'_ which Harry took to be a significant event, although he had not seen it in his text-books.

A cough broke his focus.

Glancing at the occupants Harry saw the Headmaster and a Goblin at the table, in front of them a large bowl that looked to be made of black marble, and two scrolls and a stack of paperwork just next to it.

'Sharpclaw, I presume?' figuring it best to address the Goblin first, although he did offer a nod towards Dumbledore.

'Obviously' the Goblin drawled in a manner similarly to that of Snape. 'Please take a seat Heir Potter, we have a lot to discuss' Sharpclaw said gesturing to the one next to him and opposite Dumbledore.

Putting on an air of confidence, Harry asked 'What is this all about then? Has something happened to my trust vault? why were you so vague in that letter?' the last one he addressed to the Headmaster.

'If I may?' Dumbledore asked Sharpclaw, who merely waved his hand in response.

Turning his focus onto the Headmaster, Harry waited for him to start what he expected to be another long-winded diatribe that the old man seemed to favour.

'Now my boy' Gods how Harry hated when he addressed him as such. 'My apologies for being vague in the letter but alas there was simply too much to talk about, most of which I am not at liberty to talk about'

He sighed and continued. 'When your parents died their last will and testament became active at Gringotts, which contained instructions to not be read until a private meeting between you and the Potter account manager' he gestured to Sharpclaw. 'The will was done before your parents went into hiding which made matters of your guardianship difficult. Your Godfather, Sirius Black-'

'Wait' Harry said interrupting him. 'You mean _the_ Sirius Black? The escaped convict is my Godfather?'. 'AND no one seemed to think I should know this when he actually escaped? No of course you would leave it until a month before we go back to school'

Dumbledore stared at him, twinkly eyes widening in surprise at his interruption. Deciding to ignore it for the time being he continued; 'As I was saying, you should have gone to him, but alas on that fateful night it was Sirius who betrayed your parent's location to Voldemort.'

Harry felt numb. That _bastard_ was the reason his parents were dead. The reason that he had been punished with his life at the Dursley's. No. He was not numb; he was angry to the point of seeming numb.

Dumbledore continued 'Ordinarily you would then be placed with your Godmother, Alice Longbottom, but as she was in hiding that was not an option and for reasons that I should not be the one to explain to you, her and her husband are in the long-term care facility at St. Mungo's Hospital.'

'As were your Grandparent's' at this Harry paid close attention. 'They were also at the hospital being treated for Dragon Pox, a horrific disease that claimed their lives a week after your parents.'

'To that end when I was alerted to your parent's death I had Hagrid bring you to your Aunt's house as they were the safest option for you, no one would think to look for you in a small muggle neighbourhood in Surrey after all. Harnessing the magic that surrounded you from your mother's sacrifice, I was able to construct blood wards around their home, until you reach 17 no magical with the intent to harm you can enter'

Swallowing his anger at the fact that it was Dumbledore who had fucked with his life, after all the Dursley's were not magical and thus could still harm him, he ground out 'But what does this have to do with my inheritance?'

At this the Goblin took over. 'Well then Heir Potter, as you have now reached the age of 13, per your parents request we are to read their will to you and you alone. Although you may choose to have Chief Warlock Dumbledore in with you.

'No' Harry said immediately.

'Mr. Potter' Dumbledore said, 'if I may, having me here may help to explain certain things and to plan our next step'

'No'

'My B-' this time the Goblin interrupted.

'Dumbledore he has asked you to leave so now leave! You may return when the will readings are over' he snarled.

With a disappointed headshake Dumbledore stood and left the room.

'Now then Heir Potter, as Dumbledore stated it is time for you to hear your parent's will, please hold your questions till the end.'

Clearing his throat and untying a rolled piece of parchment with a click of his fingers, the Goblin read:

 _This document is the official last will and testament of Heir James Fleamont Potter and Lily Potter nee Evans._

 _In the event of our death we adhere to the rules of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter, thus our joint will shall be read to our child 'Hadrian James Potter' when he reaches the age of 13 and his claim to the Heir ring is legitimate. The new Heir Potter is to have access to all vaults and treasures in our vaults, including the Lord's Vault although he can only claim the Lord's ring when he reaches the age of 17 and is legally an adult._

 _Hadrian is to inherit all but the following items/values:_

 _100 000 Galleons to Remus John Lupin_

 _100 000 Galleons to Sirius Orion Black III_

 _100 000 Galleons to Peter Pettigrew_

 _5000 Galleons to Severus Snape and the letter addressed to him in Lily Potter's Vault_

 _40 000 Galleons to Frank and Alice Longbottom_

 _1000 Galleons to Neville Longbottom_

 _10 000 Galleons to Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore_

 _3000 Galleons to Minerva McGonagall and the letter addressed to her in James Potter's Vault_

 _3000 Galleons to Filius Flitwick and the letter addressed to him in Lily Potter's Vault_

 _Until Hadrian reaches his majority he is to be left with the following people_

 _Sirius Black_

 _Alice and Frank Longbottom_

 _Charlus and Dorea Potter_

 _Albus Dumbledore._

 _This be our official Will. May Mother Magic bless you all._

Sharpclaw eyed the Wizard in front of him, who had been quiet for several minutes since he had finished the reading of the Will. 'Heir Potter are you okay?'.

Harry, or Hadrian as his name apparently was, was far from okay. The information in the will had left him with many questions.

'So my actual name is Hadrian?'

'Correct'

'And I am the heir to some hereditary title that sounds official?'

'Also correct. When you achieve your Lordship you will take your seat on the Wizengamot with the other Lords and Ladies of Society, or you can choose a proxy to sit and vote if you wish. That is your prerogative' Sharpclaw explained, it was odd that the young man was not only unaware of his title and history, but of the structure of society as well.

This was all very strange to Harry; not only did he have to deal with being the bloody boy-who-lived but now also had the responsibilities of a family history he knew nothing about; at least he had until he was 17 to take up his place on the Wizengamot.

'As you have reached 13 years of age it is now time to give you the heir ring' at this, the Goblin walked over to the door and called for Dumbledore to enter. Dumbledore walked in and tried to say something but stopped after a look from Sharpclaw.

'Heir Potter, I have called Chief Warlock Dumbledore to oversee your ascension. He was named in your parent's will and is your current magical guardian, this combined with his position as Head of the Wizengamot means your transition should be smooth as he can validate your claims to your early ascension, as most Heirs are given their rings at 15, but the Potter family have always done it slightly differently'

Sharpclaw handed Harry a piece of parchment and instructed him 'Place your ring finger in the middle of the bowl and repeat the words on the parchment'

After looking at Dumbledore, who nodded his head with a kind smile, he did as instructed 'I Hadrian James Potter call upon the Magic of my ancestors and Mother Magic herself, to bless me and charge me with my duty. May my call be heard, so mote it be' at the end of this Harry felt a prick on his finger and pulled his hand away to see a small needle with his blood, retracting into the bowl.

'What the actual fu-' he was interrupted by a flashing light from the bowl.

In the very centre now sat two silver rings.

The two rings looked very similar. Picking them up he placed them on his finger. Now that he had a closer view he noticed that one ring had what looked like an engraving of a Dragon circling it whilst the other had either a crow or raven.

Looking up he noticed Sharpclaw and Dumbledore at him in surprise 'What?'

'Forgive me Harry but I am rather shocked that you have not only the heir ring for the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter, but also for the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black' Dumbledore said 'I can only assume that due to Dorea being your grandmother, who was a Black before marrying your Grandfather, and your status as Sirius' Godson that you have been chosen as the Black heir, meaning you will also inherit the Black Lordship and Wizengamot seat as well when you reach 17'

Sharpclaw nodded 'That does seem to be the case. However, Heir Potter there is an issue now that you have accepted the heir ring for House Potter'

'You did not mention this earlier Sharpclaw, what is the issue' Dumbledore asked in surprise.

The Goblin glared, 'As you are not a member of House Potter and this does not pertain to you in your capacity as Heir Potter's guardian then I had no reason to! Although I do require you to stay for this next part'

Subdued and confused, Dumbledore went silent.

Looking at Harry he continued, 'In the Last Will and Testament of your Grandparents, Lord Charlus and Lady Dorea, they name that on their death the Heir of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter will ascend to Lord Potter of Potter'

'But my parents said I could not become a Lord until I was 17?' Harry half stated, half asked in confusion. Dumbledore merely looked pensive.

'That is correct, but as your parent's agreed to "adhere to the rules of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter" then they defer to the Lord's Will which names you Lord Potter.' There was a flash and soon the Heir ring of House Potter had turned gold with the Dragon engravings turning a deep red.

'Congratulations on your ascension to the Head of your Family, Lord Potter'

'Shite.'

 **Author's Note: Legit massive thank you to those who followed this story and me and added it to their favourites! And a special thank you to those who reviewed (I'll answer any questions/comments left below this note so people feel free to skip that bit if you want). I've just finished my exams for my first year at university and have around 4 months off so plenty of writing to be done! Reviews are very welcome!**

 **Very speech heavy in this chapter sorry! but did not see the point in breaking up every single line just for Harry to give a look of annoyance or confusion. With this chapter I tried to do it differently to what I've seen which is honestly quite difficult because there's only a few ways to do the whole will/money/title thing. By having the will done before they went into hiding it allows for the Sirius plot to play out throughout the year. I just think that sometimes too much happens too quick. Plus, the way I see it is that to make someone a secret keeper you have to trust them undoubtedly so why would they be like 'oh fyi if we are dead it's Peter Pettigrew's fault not Sirius'. This felt like a natural place to end the chapter, so the next one will deal with the aftermath of his ascension to Lord Potter as well as how Dumbledore reacts.**

 **Comments/ Questions from reviews:**

 **WOLF970: Ikr! I just think that he gave up too easily sometimes and was too passive, I'm not saying he will blow up and scream at every issue but he will find it difficult to keep his temper in check. Something that will lead to conflict with his current and likely future friends.**

 **GOD OF ALL: Thanks!**

 **BROnicorn: Tbh I do like the Harry/Daphne pairing as well but we shall see, I think I just want to see how things progress naturally and not just force two of them together. As for Blaise you shall see, I just think he is an interesting male character for Harry to become friends with so his whole interactions are not just with female characters.**

 **NSAIFNABI: Sorry ;)**

 **LINDA: Thanks!**


	3. Chapter 3- So Lord Potter, What Next?

**Chapter 3- So Lord Potter, What Next?**

 _July 31_ _st_ _1993_

'Shite' Harry didn't know what to think, how could he be a Lord? the wizarding world made no sense sometimes.

Dumbledore chortled, 'Lord Potter such language is unbecoming of someone in your position. Although giving the shocking events it does appear to be a fair reaction'

'Professor I don't understand what any of this means'

'I am not surprised, I had planned to wait until you turned 14 before I introduced you to what it meant to be an Heir and Lord, a clear oversight on my part. Simply put Harry, you are now in charge of the Potter Household and all that that entitles. You have access to your seat on the Wizengamot and may propose new laws as well as presiding over trials that require their full attention,' He went on to elaborate, 'You are the one who can create an alliance between your House and another and, I would recommend you not mention this to Miss Granger, being a member of one of the Most Ancient and Noble Houses offer you certain protections and benefits that others are not privy to.'

A thought came to Harry that filled him with joy. 'But this is brilliant! I'm free from the Dursley's control and there's nothing they can do about it!'

He looked at the Goblin who had a smirk and was nodding along; Dumbledore on the other hand looked slightly pale, Harry had a sense of what would be said next.

'I am sorry but I truly must protest.' He said sounding genuinely sincere yet forceful, 'As I have mentioned to you in the past, it is imperative to your safety that you return to your relatives' home until you are 17. There is nowhere safer for you then there, especially with the threat of Sirius Black being free

'You have n-' Harry's argument was interrupted by Sharpclaw.

'Actually Chief Warlock, Lord Potter has a number of heavily warded properties that offer protection' Harry perked up, Dumbledore looked intrigued. 'Contrary to popular belief Potter Manor was never destroyed by the Death Eaters in the last War, and remains standing and protected to this day, although all the house-elves are likely to have passed.'

Harry smiled, he had a bleedin manor that he could live in whilst they were stuck in Privet Drive. Although he did feel slightly sad at the thought of the dead house-elves it made him think of Dobby and what he was up to.

Seeing Dumbledore looking thoughtful Harry started, 'I know you think you are doing what is best for me and keeping me safe, but I will not be returning to that hell hole of a place you like to call my home!' he continued ' I have gone through enough there, treated like a worthless slave for as long as I can remember and yet you honestly believe I would go back there ? They can hang for all I care. They are _nothing_ to me'

Dumbledore's eyes seemed to grow misty 'They truly mean that little to you?'

'My Hogwarts letter was addressed to " _The Cupboard Under the Stairs"_ professor. You may have thought you were protecting me from outsiders who wished me harm, but nothing prevented those who I lived with. Does that answer your question sir?' Harry told the man who had unknowingly condemned to such a life.

Clearing his throat of emotion, the aged wizard conceded, 'I have caused you much suffering Harry and till my dying day I hope you know I am truly and truthfully sorry for my actions. I was so blinded by my beliefs on family and love that it caused you more pain than joy'

Harry just nodded, he could not forgive the man nor forget what he had done, but at least he had admitted he was wrong.

'May I ask then Harry', he stopped, 'Oh my I forgot myself, how would you like me to address you Lord Potter, by your title? Or perhaps Hadrian?'

Harry was shocked, could this be the end of his whole "My boy" routine? 'Err Harry is fine professor, although I'm guessing in the Wizengamot we need to refer to each other by our official titles?'

Dumbledore nodded, 'As I was saying Harry, although you are under no obligation to please let me know how you are settling in at your new home and if there is anything I can do to help.'

Knowledge. That was what he needed. He had been sheltered from the Wizarding world for too long and knew next to nothing about modern wizarding Britain. 'Could you recommend me some books on being a Lord? and how the Wizengamot works?'

Dumbledore beamed at the request, starting to write down a few books that he deemed most helpful. 'I would also like to offer to help prepare you for the Wizengamot if you would like Harry? Although the books are fairly good they are just general information'

Harry considered it before deciding to accept, after all who better to teach him than the head of the body itself. He wondered how much further Dumbledore would go in the future to make reparations for his actions.

'Very well Harry, with that I shall take my leave' I do believe your Hogwarts letter will be arriving tomorrow so make sure you send back your list of elective choices as well, I will write you later in the week to decide when we will meet' He then looked at Sharpclaw who had been surprisingly patient throughout the exchange, 'You have my thanks Sharpclaw' both bowed their heads to each other in respect. And with that, Dumbledore left the room.

Harry tried to process what had happened so far, so much information had been given over such a short period of time that his thoughts were all jumbled and confused.

'Now then' Said Sharpclaw causing Harry to twitch in surprise at the sudden intrusion to his thoughts. 'Now that Dumbledore has had his say, let us get down to business Lord Potter and discuss your finances and what is to be done about your parent's will'

He pushed a leather-bound folder towards Harry, 'These are your vault summaries Lord Potter, as you are only the Heir to the Black family that is the only Black vault you currently have in your possession'

Opening the folder, he suddenly stopped, 'How come I am not Lord Black? I would've thought that since I have been recognised as Lord Potter then the Heir Black ring would've changed as well?'

'Well as Sirius Black is supposed to be the current Lord Black perhaps it has still deemed him worthy despite his actions against your family, or perhaps the Black Family Magic does not yet recognise you as a suitable Lord of the family yet' he explained.

Nodding he carried on to read his financial state:

 _Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter_

 _Potter Family Vault:_

 _868 490 597 Galleons_

 _10 377 129 Sickles_

 _600 000 Knuts_

 _The Potter Grimoire_

 _Various Weapons, Jewels, Books, and Artefacts_

 _Heir Potter Vault:_

 _50 000 Galleons_

 _Dowager Potter Vault:_

 _1 000 000 Galleons + a yearly stipend of 5000 Galleons_

 _James Potter Vault:_

 _678 809 Galleons_

 _1 letter_

 _Various Artefacts and Clothes_

 _Lilly Potter Vault:_

 _4900 Galleons_

 _876 Knuts_

 _2 Letters_

 _Properties:_

 _Potter Manor – Kent, England_

 _Potter Chateau- Paris, France_

 _Potter Villa- Rome, Italy_

 _Most Ancient and Noble House of Black_

 _Heir Black Vault:_

 _650 090 Galleons_

 _Various Books_

Harry let out a long whistle, safe to say he was pretty damn rich.

Seeing he was done, Sharpclaw informed Harry that 'the only Potter items you do not have access to is the letters in your parents' personal vault as according to their will they are to be bequeathed onto others.

'In regards to your parents' will, we have summoned the benefactors to arrive tomorrow at one PM and you are required to be there to authorise and oversee the reading. Particularly in the case of the Longbottom Family as Dowager Augusta Longbottom will be accepting on behalf of her son and daughter in law due to her position as regent.'

'In that case I will be back tomorrow to go through my vaults after the will reading'

'Very good Lord Potter, the meeting will be in this same room. Simply walk in and show your ring if any Goblin tries to tell you to line up' He explained.

'Do you know how I can find Potter Manor? After I get my things from the Dursley's I plan to never go back' Harry asked.

'Your Lord's ring acts as a portkey, a method of transportation that takes you to the Manor, simply rub the ring and state "Home", the portkeys to your other properties will likely be in the Family Vault. Furthermore, if you sign here then we can create a new vault for you that links to a moleskin pouch that you can withdraw money from. The standard capacity is 1500 Galleons, it is so our wealthier customers need not travel in each time they wish to make smaller purchases.'

Harry liked the idea of it and so signed the parchment, Sharpclaw then stamped the form and handed him what looked to be a small brown pouch. 'It will be active within 10 minutes and you just need to think of a value for it to appear'.

Harry thanked the Goblin and took his leave, it felt as if he had been in there for hours yet glancing at the large clock in the Gringotts Lobby it showed that only 50 minutes had passed.

He walked out in a slight daze as he headed through the Leaky Cauldron to call the Knight Bus again. The difference this time was when he handed over the money to pay for his journey and Stan noticed his ring, he lost the joker persona he had before saying 'Apologies milord for by behaviour' with a slightly bowed head. Harry just nodded at him and mumbled thanks, unsure how to respond. This time Stan waited for Harry to sit down before the bus took off.

Arriving at the Dursley's household he quickly packed all his things in his trunk and activated the shrinking charm on it, before writing them a quick letter, it would be hours before they could find clothes big enough for the whale.

 _To my supposed Family,_

 _Today just so happens to be your lucky day, my time in this hellish prison you call a home is over and you never have to see me again. Screw you all._

 _Harry_

 _P.S. Dudley does your mum know about the Porno mags you have hidden under your bed? Or the fact you steal out of her purse to buy them ?_

Harry took one more look around the Kitchen, and with a smile he placed the shrunken trunk in his pocket, rubbed the ring on his finger and whispered:

 _'Home'_

 **AN: Another chapter done! And over 100 followers :) Thank you so much!**

 **I've decided in his relationship to Dumbledore there won't be major conflict or issues, just Harry getting annoyed when he goes a bit too far with the whole 'Greater Good' chat. There won't be that Grandfatherly relationship that many portray nor the evil secret Dark Lord Dumbledore, merely someone who wishes to make amends for his actions. Although his flaws will certainly lead to some drama *cough* Snape *cough*. I know some prefer longer chapters but to me this feels more natural as if I went on to combine chapters it would feel too long winded to write at the moment.**

 **Next couple of Chapters will be Harry settling in in his new home and starting to understand about the Wizengamot through books and Dumbledore, as well as an interesting interaction with the Weasley family (as mentioned in chapter one this is not a bashing fic) How do you picture the characters btw ? For Daphne I always picture Adelaide Kane, for Susan its Sophie Turner and oddly enough for Blaise its Zayn Malik despite completely being a different description. Strange to think how certain people stick at characters.**

 **Comments/Questions from reviews:**

 **NSAIFNABI: The situation with Sirius has slightly been alluded to in this chapter and when the truth eventually comes to light, well, the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter is very unhappy.**

 **MAGNUSSS: Thanks! Oooh we shall see, third year definitely will not be having romance as that year, as well as fourth for the most part, is Harry connecting with others and learning about his place.**

 **MAGITECH: Thanks for the review! Oh do not worry Snape is a bastard in my eyes and the cruel git will get what he deserves, although that may take a while. Although I do love a good Harry/Hermione fic this is certainly not going to be one, nor will she be a spy for Dumbledore as mentioned earlier although I like those stories I did not want this one to be like that, where they are payed to be his friend. And MILD SPOILER ALERT she will not be having a time turner because like seriously who gives a thirteen-year-old girl the power to travel back in time just so she can get to study more subjects than she needs!**

 **GUEST: Well this is a fanfiction rated T! Harry is intentionally different to canon and so has different aspects in his personality.**


	4. Chapter 4-Manor,Meetings and the Law

Chapter 4- The Manor, the Meeting and the Law

 _July 31_ _st_ _1993_

Why on earth did Wizards have to invent travel that caused bodily harm, Harry thought to himself. The Portkey felt as if a fish hook caught him within his navel and pulled him in all different directions in the air, before he finally stopped when he was slammed into the floor.

Groaning and stretching, he took a look around where he landed.

He was in awe, the high ceilings and columns of the entry hall were massive, directly ahead of him was a large staircase leading up to the second floor. The marble staircase and columns reminded Harry of the ancient Greeks. Walking around it took a good 15 minutes for him to walk around the ground floor having a quick look at everything, and a further hour looking at the rest of the manor and its outsides. Inside the manor itself he found a potions lab with loads of windows to act as ventilation, a large library that he planned to look at later, and a large formal ball room. There was a small river on the north most corner of the property heading east and what seemed to be a couple of Greenhouses to the West. He had to run out as soon as he opened the door to the first one as the smell of the decaying plants was certainly vile. He could see the gate in the distance at the end of a long winding path, the sound of church bells meant that there had to be a small village or town nearby, somewhere he could go shopping tomorrow to get food.

He walked back inside and sat in the living room, pondering what to do next. It was odd how silent it was, in Privet Drive he was constantly surrounded by sounds, be it Dudley's tv or Uncle Vernon's heavy breathing. The silence was rather unnerving. The coffee table in front of him had a thing sheet of dust covering it, as if it hadn't been cleaned in a couple of weeks, he thought it was odd. How the hell was he meant to clean all of this? maybe he could hire a muggle maid he pondered, or even better …

'DOBBY!' he said rather loudly, hoping it would work.

A second later and a soft _POP_ was heard around the manor, before Harry saw a green blob sprinting towards him which jumped to hug him around the neck.

'Mister Harry Potter Sir!' the little elf squeaked, 'Dobby is so happy you summons him!' Harry smiled and patted the elf on the back.

Dobby let go and started to look around 'You haves a nice house Mister Potter' he noticed the dust and started to speak but stopped, looking rather sad.

'What is it Dobby?'

'It's the dust Sir, the house-elf magic that kept the place clean started to go recently. The Potter elves must've cast them before they died'. Dobby's ears drooped and me muttered something that sounded a different language and raised a fist in the air, it must have been a sort of form of respect, Harry thought.

Dobby turned to look at him and spoke in his excitable voice once more 'What can Dobby help you with?'

'Well I know you only just left the Malfoy family, but I was wondering if you would like to become my-'

He was interrupted by Dobby once more hugging him, looking into his eyes. 'I Dobby accept Harry Potter as my master. So mote it be.'

'Great! Are you sure you can clean this whole manor? Do you know any elves who can look after the land as well?'

'Dobby is knowing of three elves who are unbound, should I call for them?'

'Please, I'll explain what will need doing and see if they wish to bond'

Dobby went silent and a few seconds later there were three simultaneous _POPS_ signifying their arrival 'Master Potter these be, Mipsy, Effy and Mellie' they all bowed slightly towards him.

'Now Dobby here tells me you are currently without a bond' The elf on the left, Mellie, let out a small whimper, he continued in a softer tone 'It would appear to me that the work needed to maintain the manor is too much for one elf to do. I need help with cleaning, maintaining the garden and land, and washing clothes. Does that sound okay?'

The elves perked up, finally happy to have a master once more. They repeated the oath Dobby made, but without the hug. 'Before you start. I order you to never harm yourselves or punish yourselves, if you make a mistake just let me know and we can discuss it. Understood?' they all nodded and popped away.

At first the idea of house-elves had made him uneasy, it reminded him too much of his experience at the hands of his family. But he spoke to Dobby before he returned home and checked out a book in the library that explained that they needed a bond and to work to survive.

Unshrinking his trunk, he decided to write a thank you letter to Hermione, Ron was in Egypt so he would thank him in person when he next saw him. Pulling out a piece of parchment and a self-inking quill he wrote:

 _Hiya Hermione!_

 _How was Paris? And thanks for the Quidditch kit you got me!_

 _I have so much to tell you when we next meet! Turns out I'm a Lord, like and actual Lord and Harry isn't even my full name! Dumbledore met me at Gringotts and my parents will was read, for some reason Mum left Snape 5000 Galleons and a letter, wonder what that's about! Anyways Ron is meant to be back in just over a week so meet then and we can shop and discuss what the fuck has been going on!_

 _Harry_

He folded it and would send it when Hedwig arrived, he had sent his faithful owl ahead knowing she would be able to find him.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

'Master Potter' a soft voice broke him out of his thoughts, he was trying to plan his day tomorrow, he had the meeting at Gringotts at one meaning he could have a lie in, explore his surroundings and potentially do some food shopping and then magical shopping after the meeting.

'Yes?' he questioned Mipsy, prompting him to continue.

'So sorry Master Potter but there be a room on the third floor that Mipsy cannot open' the elf said nervously.

'Mipsy there is nothing to apologise for, show me where and I will investigate.'

The small elf led him up the stairs to the third floor to a room with large double wooden doors. Around the edges he noticed the same engravings that the Potter ring had. Almost instinctively he pressed the ring against the door and heard an audible click. A quick glance at Mipsy showed the elf looking excited, well at least that's what harry interpreted the raised clasped hands and wide-eyed look to be showing.

He pushed open the door. The room was a large office with a dark ornate desk that had papers still on it and a dried out quill. The wall opposite the door had to large windows that faced the river as well as the gate. He was about to continue inspecting the office when to his shock her heard a female voice calling out 'James? Finally, you returned!'

He turned around quickly at the sound of the voice pulling out his wand and aiming it at the source, until he faltered. The sound came from a portrait hanging above the fire, she looked around fifty and had a kind face. The woman looked taken aback at his actions until she looked in his eyes. 'Oh not James, I just thought, you must be my Grandson Hadrian then? Oh but that means...' The portrait went silent seeming lost in her thoughts. One of the biggest shocks of coming into the wizarding world was finding out that not only could pictures move, but portraits could talk and had memories of the one painted.

'I'm guessing you must be Dorea then?' he couldn't think what else to say, he hated emotional stuff like this, how was he meant to act?

'Yes that's right! Now tell me all that has happened to you, how come you have the Lord's ring on your finger?'

And so he did, he explained for hours about his life with his relatives, going to Hogwarts through to his end of year experiences with Voldemort and the Basilisk. He told her about the wills and his ascension to being Heir Black as well. In turn he asked her about his parents and Grandfather. 'Why isn't his portrait here?' referring to his grandfather, back in first year he had asked Dumbledore if his parents had a portrait of them but he told him unfortunately not.

'Your grandfather was very busy with the Wizengamot during the war due to the number of emergency sessions and trials, so he kept putting his off and from what you've told me we got sick soon after so he likely did not have one done'

He nodded, it was a shame he'd never get to know the man.

She talked about his dad and mum, telling him funny stories of when they first met and how he used to plan to "woo" her over the summer and take his ideas in September to school. He found the whole conversation rather awkward and unemotional, even though Dorea seemed to have a choked voice most of the time. He wasn't the biggest fan of emotions like that, ever since he was young he learnt that crying and being sad at the Dursleys' would be ignored and lead to punishment. It was a sign of being weak.

'Harry go over to the bookshelf by the desk and pick up the book with the Dragon engravings, the symbol of the Potter family. It is the ward book and will give you control of the protections on the manor and allow you to control who may enter'

He did as instructed and picked up the book. There was a large rush of magic in the air as he felt connected to the manor. It was his to protect, and it was to protect him as well. Opening the first page he saw a list of names, worryingly he saw the name _Sirius Black_ written amongst the list:

 _Cygnus Black_

 _Edgar Bones_

 _Albus Dumbledore_

 _Charles Ogden_

 _Minerva McGonagall_

 _Griselda Marchbanks_

 _Augusta Longbottom_

 _Andromeda Tonks_

 _Remus Lupin_

 _Peter Pettigrew_

'How do I get rid of the names and forbid them access?' He wanted Sirius Black removed as soon as possible.

'Run your ring over the names you wish to remove, to add one you just write down the name'

He removed them all, but after some consideration added Dumbledore back to the list. Flipping through the book he noticed a few pages were dedicated to what seemed to be specific wards, some were in green ink which Dorea told him meant they were active, and the others were red meaning they were inactive.

He went to the cupboard behind the desk and found two keys hanging with the labels for his other properties under them and a random word, they must've been the portkeys he had been told about, although they were not in the family vault as suggested. He was tempted to go this summer but decided he had too much to do and learn in the short month that was left before school started.

Hearing a tapping on the window he saw Hedwig had arrived. He let her in and stroked her feathers.

"I know you just got here girl but do you mind taking this to Hermione?' Hedwig hooted as if insulted that he even had to ask, and a short while later she was flying off, letter

attached.

He felt drained and headed off to find a bedroom to sleep in, Effy directed him to the master bed-room, and after assuring him the sheets had been washed and dried during his time in the study. He stripped to his shorts, climbed into bed and fell asleep.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 1_ _st_ _1993_

Harry woke up the next morning feeling extremely hungry, he rolled out of bed in his shorts and headed downstairs wondering how he could get some food. He was shocked to see that Dobby was there making what seemed to be a batch of pancake batter.

'Dobby, where did you get the ingredients?'

"Dobby saw there was no food in the pantry so went to Wizard's Mart to stock up'

'Ahh thank you Dobby'

Harry went to sit down at the head of the table and saw a letter laid down next to the Daily Prophet saying:

 _Mr. H Potter_

 _Potter Manor_

 _Kent_

 _Dear Mr Potter,_

 _Please note that the new school year will begin on September the first. The Hogwarts Express will leave from King's Cross Station, platform nine and three-quarters, at eleven o'clock.  
Third-years are permitted to visit the village of Hogsmeade at certain weekends. Please give the enclosed permission form to your parent or guardian to sign.  
A list of books for next year is enclosed._

 _Please fill in the form to select your electives, you may choose at least two with a maximum of three.  
Yours sincerely,  
Professor M. McGonagall  
Deputy Headmistress_

Harry looked at the form quickly filling out his options, placing a tick next to "Ancient Runes", "Arithmancy" and "Care of Magical Creatures".

Ron had tried to get him to take Divination with COMC as they were easy passes according to his older brothers, but Harry didn't think Divination was as interesting as Runes and Arithmancy. Plus, it would be beneficial for Harry to have an understanding of Runes as they linked to permanent warding, a vital piece of knowledge considering he now had total control over the powerful wards and protections of his family.

He knew Hermione wouldn't be happy with only being allowed to take three at the most as she had tried to ask to be allowed to take them all but McGonagall had firmly refuted the idea.

Finishing his breakfast, he went upstairs to have a wash then dressed, he took a look at the too big clothes and resolved to get some new robes and everyday wizarding wear, and some muggle too.

He went to the Lord's study briefly chatting to his grandmother, before going to explore the library before needing to head to Gringotts.

The library was beautiful. There was without a doubt more books than in the Hogwarts's library. Everything was sorted into categories, some he had no clue even existed, like the small section on wandless, elemental and, he blushed, sex magic. It was safe to say that the Potter library encompassed many sections of magic. None of the books on the Hogwarts list or the ones Dumbledore recommended were in the library from what he could see so he made sure to put the lists in his pocket before heading off.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

Effy had informed him that he could take the Floo in the drawing room to get to Gringotts, the only ones who could Floo to Potter Manor was himself and Dumbledore.

Making sure his pronunciation was clear, he did not want a repetition of the events last year where he ended up in Knockturn Alley, he flooed to Gringotts and headed to the meeting room he was at yesterday.

Walking in to the room he saw Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall sitting there, both stood when he entered smiling at him.

'Mr Pot- my apologies Lord Potter, it is good to see you' Professor McGonagall greeted him.

He felt a slight awkwardness, 'You don't need to call me Lord, Professor'

She let a small smile show.

'I brought my options with me if that's okay? thought it'd be easier than sending Hedwig when I knew I'd be seeing you today'

'That's fine Mr Potter' she took a look at the list she handed him, muttering 'Ancient Runes, Arithmancy and Care of Magical Creatures'

'Very good Mr Potter, if I may ask, please do write to Miss Granger she keeps pestering me about the "unfairness of repression of her learning" she even had the nerve to suggest she be allowed access to a Time Turner, as if the Department of Mysteries would allow a 13-year-old girl access to time travel so she could take two extra subjects for at least 3 years' she huffed.

'I'll do my best Professor but you know how Hermione can be'

Harry turned to Professor Dumbledore who greeted him with a handshake which surprised Harry, seeing his inquisitive look Dumbledore explained 'In formal meetings and events like this proper procedure must be followed, for example although you have told Minerva to not call you Lord, in this situation when the others arrive she must, as you will have to refer to me as "Chief Warlock" and I to you as "Lord Potter".'

He nodded in understanding.

Dumbledore continued, 'I'm guessing you have not yet had a chance to peruse any of the books yet? No? Well when Dowager Longbottom enters it is proper decorum to greet her with a kiss on her ring hand'

'Why all the formality?'

'It is a sign of respect amongst people in the wizarding world, although some choose to ignore it'

Seeing Harry's nod, he continued 'In regards to the lessons I have offered would the fourth be acceptable for our first one at my office in Hogwarts?' This worked well for Harry as it gave him time to start reading the texts recommended.

'Lord Potter' he heard a voice call and turned to see Sharpclaw entering the room.

'Sharpclaw good to see you'

Gesturing to Harry to walk to the opposite end of the room he informed him that 'I received a letter today my Lord, when you ascended to your status of heir then lord the fees to the law firm your family have on retainer resumed, thus they have sent a letter to Gringotts to pass on to you' he handed it over:

 _To Lord Potter,_

 _Lord Potter, as payments to keep our law firm 'Greengrass and Associates' as retainer for your Most Ancient and Noble House, you have full access to our services and may write or visit us if you require any legal assistance._

 _To write to us address letters to:_

 _201 Banker Avenue_

 _London_

 _England_

 _Our Floo address is simply:_

 _201 Banker Avenue_

 _Lord Cyrus Greengrass._

'Greengrass? I recognise that name'

Professor McGonagall spoke 'His daughter Daphne is in your year, in Slytherin'

An image of a haughty looking girl with blonde hair flashed through his mind.

Harry went and took a seat, maybe it would be beneficial to meet the lawyer at some point in the future.

Over the next 10 minutes the others mentioned in the will arrived, save for Pettigrew and Black. First up Augusta and her grandson Neville arrived, he greeted her as taught as she bowed her head in turn to him, she had requested that they would be able to meet one day this summer to discuss business between their families. He spoke briefly with Neville but even still he was shy, it made no sense to Harry, how could Neville eventually be the Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Longbottom when he was so shy?

Professor Flitwick entered soon after, giving Harry a smile and going to converse with Sharpclaw. After him a tired looking man entered wearing shabby robes and looking quite grey, this must be Lupin the one Dorea said was a werewolf friend of his parents. Before he could think more on it the bastard known as Snape entered, he nodded at Dumbledore and looked at Harry, opening his mouth in an attempt to say some withering remark no doubt. Until he saw Harry's ring that is, his face went red with rage and he sat down glaring at him, Harry glared right back.

Sharpclaw started to speak 'Now we are all here, I will read the will of James Fleamont Potter and Lily Potter nee Evans'

He read the will handing out letters to those who had been left them and informing them that the money had been transferred to their vaults, 'Now Lord Potter do you authorise the representation of Dowager Longbottom as the benefactor for Frank and Alice Longbottom'

'I do'

'Then we have no more business to be done'

Everyone took their leave, Dumbledore thinking to himself, wondering if he should offer Remus the Defence job, the one that had meant to do had a nasty potions accident and had to withdraw. After all he had got an O in his O.W.L and N.E.W.T, and perhaps Harry would enjoy having someone who was close to his parents to talk to. Seeing the shabby man walking out the bank, he hurried after him.

Harry had some money converted to muggle money and had a quick look at the family vault, it would take days to fully categorise the money, books, jewels and weapons in the vault. He left quickly as he wanted to get his shopping done.

Walking into Diagon Alley his first stop was 'Madame Malkins' to get his uniform and other clothes. She was rather excited by the number of clothes he was talking about and slightly confused until she saw the Lord's ring on his finger and hurried to close the shop to the public. She spent around an hour discussing clothes with him before finally taking his measurements so she could create a whole wardrobe for him. She walked him to the door with the promise that the clothes would be available to collect in a couple of days.

His next stop was "Flourish and Blotts" where he found the section on the Wizengamot and picked up the ones recommended. He would get his school shopping when he met Ron and Hermione, but for now picked up an introductory text for Arithmancy and Ancient Runes, as well as a book about Warding. What took him slightly by surprise was the shelf dedicated to him! Someone had published books about him going on fictional adventures during his childhood, he was sure Ron had mentioned that Ginny used to listen to stories about him all the time as a child but he didn't think that they actually meant real books. He spotted at least a dozen different titles, grabbing one "Harry Potter and the Disastrous Dragon' he flipped angrily to the front page, in bold letter at the bottom it said **"These books have been approved by the Potter Estate"** it looked like Harry needed to see Lord Greengrass soon, he would not let this Andrew Oxfield get away with making money off his life.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

He headed to the Leaky Cauldron after calling Dobby to take his purchases back to the manor.

Grabbing some Floo powder he threw it in the fire and stated '201 Banker Avenue' before stepping in.

He exited the fire into a well-lit marble room, he walked over to the desk to gain the attention of the receptionist.

'Hello Sir how may I help you today'

'I'm here to see Lord Greengrass if he is available'

She opened her book, 'Do you have an appointment Mr …?'

'Lord Potter' he told her, figuring he was more likely to get one by using his title, 'and no I don't have an appointment, but I have a legal issue I need to discuss with him'

'One moment my Lord' she got up and walked to a door down the corridor, soon a tall man with dark hair came striding out with her following him trying to keep up with his speed.

'Well met Lord Potter, welcome to Greengrass and Associates' he said holding out his hand which Harry shook confidently.

'Well met Lord Greengrass, I know this is rather soon considering I only received your letter today but an _issue_ has come to my attention that I require your services for'

'Of course Lord Potter, Stephanie please send Lawyer Tonks to Meeting Room one immediately' he told her.

The two Lords walked to meeting room one and waited for the Tonks woman to join them which she soon did, she stopped slightly at the sight of Harry and his rings before composing herself and introducing herself as 'Andromeda Tonks my Lord'.

This struck a chord with Harry, he wondered why this woman was one of the few who had access to Potter Manor.

'How can we help Lord Potter?'

'Quite simply, it appears a man named Andrew Oxfield has been writing fictional books about me for a number of years, and claiming to have the permission of the Potter estate when he does not. I want to sue him and claim any money he has made off my name.'

Andromeda looked angry whilst Greengrass looked thoughtful, 'It should certainly be an easy to claim to make as he has not had permission to use your name in such a way. Although he may kick up a fuss about freedom of expression and creative rights'

'But' Andromeda continued, 'since you are now a Lord it will be easy to apply pressure as he will not want to challenge an ancient house, and if he does he is foolish.'

The meeting wrapped quickly with them promising to write him after they had served the author with the law suit.

He flooed back home and decided to explore the muggle area another day, at the moment he just wished to read the books he had bought on the Wizengamot. Opening "Our Sacred Eight and Society" he started to read.

 **Authors Note: Slightly longer chapter so hope you enjoyed! Also if anyone likes Game of Thrones I've published a prologue chapter, it's about an OC Tyrell, twin brother to Margaery who shakes up the Game of Thrones so give that a read if you feel like it.**

 **This chapter: The house-elf part was quite brief because they won't have much of a role in this story, although Dobby will appear every now and then. Can't remember if the whole Harry Potter books about him as a young child actually happened in the books or if it's just from fanfiction, but decided to include it as through this he starts making connections and is exposed to the legal system. The shopping spree had to happen so sorry for the cliché!**

 **Responses to Reviews:**

 **NSAIFNABI- I was tempted to include the Dursley's reaction but I liked the idea of Harry's letter being the end of their presence. In terms of Harry healing that is something that will come later as it fits into my plans of something I want to happen later in the story.**

 **DEATHMVP: Thank you ! And I agree but I wanted a better Dumbledore in this fic, although I have an idea for another fic that literally has Harry punching him in the face ;) And his need to keep things close will certainly be interesting when it comes to Harry Vs Snape. With the laws and politics that will come to more the end of third to fourth year as at first he needs experience. Although I will certainly be taking your suggestion on board so thanks!**

 **MAGITECH- I actually have a scene planned for a meeting with the Malfoys so I hope you enjoy that when it happens in a couple of chapters! And yes Narcissa will certainly not enjoy being embarrassed in front of not only a Lord but also Heir Black. And I am undecided on the private quarters because both the Dorms and a Private suite offer benefits.**

 **TREEBROOKE- Thank you! You will see a lot more of that during the summers which I am really looking forward to writing about!**

 **GOD OF ALL: Thanks !**


	5. Chapter 5- Readings, Malfoys, and Runes

Chapter 5 – Readings, Malfoys, and Runes

 _The Sacred Eight are, first and foremost, the most prestigious and elevated members of the Wizengamot, holding an extra one vote each. The Most Ancient and Noble houses of: Black, Bones, Davis, Greengrass, Longbottom, Ogden, Potter, Smith, are who we look to in times of great distress, to unite and prevent the extinction of magic._

This was certainly interesting, most of the names he recognised as being classmates of his, Roger Davis and Nathaniel Ogden were both older than him, whereas the rest were in his year.

The author explained how over a thousand years ago there was a great attempt to purge magic from the land. Wizards had to seek sanctuary with each other and it was the actions of his ancestor and the other sacred eight taking control of the situation and setting up wards to keep the settlements hidden from the muggles who wished to harm them. It was this teamwork to protect, that inspired everyone to unite, they formed the first Wizengamot and offered hope when spirit was at its lowest.

It was interesting to Harry that Susan Bones, one heiress to one of the seats of eight, would be one of the ones mocking him last year and proclaiming him the heir of Slytherin. Unlike Harry she had been raised in the magical world and would know that they were of equal status.

 _Throughout the years other houses ascended to the Wizengamot, some houses were deemed noble due to their services to magic, whilst some are known as Ancient due to how long they have had their seat. There are a handful of Ancient and Noble Houses in the current Wizengamot, but only the Sacred Eight hold the title of Most Ancient and Noble._

It went on to list the current, at least to 1990 when it was released, members of the body, interestingly Malfoy belonged to the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy which explained his attitude, but it meant that he had to defer to Harry in public as he was of a higher status than him. The Weasleys were not in the Wizengamot but were a pureblood family, meaning they had the title of 'Clan'.

 _The current Wizengamot also includes the Minister of Magic, the Heads of the Ministry Departments, who hold one vote, as well as the Chief-Warlock who acts as an independent force within the body to ensure fairness. The chambers also have a section for Ambassadors from other countries, as well as a press section and gallery for when a trial occurs._

Harry folded his book over, it had been a few days since he had arrived at Potter manor and he had quickly settled into a routine of getting up each day, having a hearty breakfast and doing a slow jog around the edges of the property before a quick swim in the river. He would then go and read about various parts of the books he had picked up.

The day after he went to authorise the will at Gringotts he wandered down to the Muggle village and had found a local butchers and greengrocers, he later told Dobby that he would be doing the food shopping from now on so he could support the local business. There was a small school that, according to Sarah the butcher, had around 50 kids in it but didn't get shut down as the other nearest school was an hour away into the main city. He liked how quaint and private the area, they even restrained themselves from being nosey when they found out he lived in the manor.

He asked Dorea about that, she explained that although the muggles could see the manor it had a muggle-repelling wards so they would not try to break in and explore. In the Ward Book there was a page explaining this in green, yet half the page was in red meaning that the wards could be altered so it was invisible to muggles. Although at this point it was redundant as they would certainly notice the giant manor disappearing.

When he told Dorea about meeting Dowager Longbottom and Lord Greengrass she was glad he had listened to Dumbledore. However, she pointed out that when dealing with someone on the Wizengamot who was not one of the Sacred Eight, he was to be the one who offered their hand to shake, but in the case of women they would always offer their hand to be kissed when greeting any Lord or Heir who had a ring.

At this point he asked her about Andromeda Tonks, the Senior Lawyer who was working his lawsuit. 'Andromeda made Senior Lawyer? Bless her I always knew she would do well'

'But who is she? Why was she on the wards list?'

'Andromeda was my relative before she was cast out of the family for marrying a muggleborn, her and Narcissa were always my favourites, it's a shame how Narcissa and Bellatrix ended up' she said seeming wistful.

'Narcissa? As in Malfoy?'

'Why yes, she was a Black before she became a Malfoy. Her mother was my sister.'

'Wait but that means Malfoy is my cousin? And a member of the Black Family'

'Yes dear do keep up. You should invite Andromeda here I would love to have a catch up with her'

Harry figured he might as well, after all he could remove her names from the ward-book after she had visited. Besides, maybe it would be good to get to know Andromeda, even though they technically weren't family anymore.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 3_ _rd_ _1993_

At around 11 am Harry flooed to the Leaky Cauldron to go about the day's business. He had been intending to collect his clothes from Madame Malkins today anyway, but Cyrus Greengrass had sent a letter asking to meet to discuss the response of Andrew Oxfield, the man who had been writing about Harry. He decided to wear a new set of robes to the meeting and send Dobby back with the rest. He did not want to talk to someone who was his equal, whist wearing his clothes from the Dursley's. Hardly a good impression.

Walking through the street he noticed it wasn't as busy as usual, plastered on the front of the Daily Prophet stall was a photo of Sirius Black looking more deranged than ever. He couldn't describe the hatred he felt for the man that caused his parents death. He stopped himself. It would do no good getting angry at the man in such a public space, he swallowed his resentment, planning to let it all out later that night when he practiced his magic.

When Malkin saw him enter she shooed her assistant off to deal with the one other inhabitant in there, and old woman who was clearly irritating the owner by her long browsing.

'Ah Lord Potter excellent timing, they were finished only an hour ago'

'Excellent, and thank you for your haste in doing so'

'It is no issue my Lord'

'May I use one of your rooms to change before I leave?'

'Of course, right this way' she directed him to the room.

He picked out a dark navy set of formal everyday robes, she had explained that formal robes were often worn by Lords even in every day matters, so she created a range herself that blended the two. He called for Dobby who took the remaining clothes back to the manor.

Thanking her and summoning the hefty number of galleons from his moleskin pouch he paid her and left.

Rather distracted by the appearance of the new "Firebolt" Broomstick on display he did not see the blond haired boy approach him.

'Wanting what you can never have Potter? What a surprise' the voice of Draco Malfoy sneered to the left of him.

Harry stilled. This was a chance to shut Malfoy up without resulting in a duel.

Turning to Malfoy he saw Lord Lucius Malfoy and his wife Narcissa walking towards them.

'Malfoy what an _unfortunate_ disturbance to my day' responded Harry, choosing to wait until Malfoy's father was close enough to reveal his hand.

'If I where you Potter I'd not wander around all alone, who knows what could be lurking about to kill you. Actually in that case do walk around.' The not yet Heir said snidely. Harry took a glance at the Malfoys who were now close enough to hear their conversation, Lucius' lips slightly twitched in amusement as expected, Narcissa on the other hand seemed slightly irritated. Interesting.

Looking to Lucius before he could even try and insult him, Harry said, 'Lord Malfoy, I did not expect that your son would act in such a threatening manor to a Lord, particularly one of the Sacred Eight' he did this whilst holding his hand in offer of a handshake as custom dictated.

All three Malfoys froze slightly, looking at the rings on Harry's finger, Harry had to keep control as to not full out smirk.

Lucius was the first to recover, 'Lord _Potter_ I had no idea you had ascended to your position at such a young age' he forced out shaking his hand quickly. 'I am sure that must be an extremely interesting tale'. Lucius was furious, Snape had told him the boy was completely unaware of his heritage, he would have to have a word with Draco, he couldn't have him taunting Potter now he was a Lord.

Turning to Narcissa, she held her hand out and he kissed it. 'Lord Potter and Heir Black my Lord, that is quite an ascension indeed' she said to him. She could ring Draco's neck in, she had never agreed with Lucius' decision to let their son taunt the Potter boy during school but he refused to listen to her, as always. Perhaps she could try meet with the Heir Black in an effort to try and save the Malfoy reputation being completely destroyed by her son.

'Lord Potter, since we are family and you are the Heir Black perhaps you would like to meet for tea one day to discuss House business?'

Crap thought Harry, he wasn't sure how he could get out of this 'Ah but of course, both you and Draco are members of the Black family after all.'

'Very well my Lord I shall write to you soon'

After a slight push from Lucius, Malfoy stepped forward practically grinding out an apology for his behaviour. 'My sincere apologies Po- Lord Potter, it was merely a joke that I took too far' His skin had gone pink and it looked as it had taken all his energy to apologise to him.

'Thank you Draco. Now if you'll excuse me I have a meeting to attend, actually Lady Malfoy I am meeting Andromeda Tonks, your sister I believe?' he asked knowing of course what her answer would be.

She appeared focused and something lit in her eyes at the mention of Andromeda however before she could respond Lucius interrupted 'Actually Lord Potter, Ms Tonks was expelled from the Black family and disowned, just so you are aware in the future' he said clearly trying to assert dominance over him now that the shock of his Lordship had worn off.

'I am well aware of that thank you. However, she is still biologically family after all'

With that he took his leave, bidding the Malfoys a blessed day. 'And by blessed I mean awful' he muttered to himself when they were out of earshot.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

When he arrived at the law-firm's office, the receptionist ushered him into the office of Andromeda Tonks who stood to shake his hand when she entered. 'Lord Greengrass sends his apologies Lord Potter but he has been called away on House business'

'Tell him no apology needed, now how is the case going?'

'We served Mr Oxfield the papers and told him we were suing for 1.2 million Galleons, yet he has decided to argue against it and wishes to appeal to a judge due to, and I quote, "being free to write and create stories off anything an author wishes" 'she explained with a role of her eyes.

'But what about the permission off the Potter estate?'

'He is claiming that as no one had protested since now, they surely understood the good he was doing on behalf of the Potter family. Of course when he said that we doubled the lawsuit for fraud. Yet he still wishes to appeal.'

'What do we do now then?'

'When the Judge sets the date we will meet with them and explain why we are suing and on what ground we have. He will then try to argue against and the Judge will then make a decision. It will more than likely go in our favour, Mr Oxfield is actually rather against the nobility and clearly wishes to be seen as standing for his cause, the fool'

After signing some more paperwork, he stood to leave but before he did he turned to her. 'You may not be aware but my grandmother had a portrait painted before she died, she was rather excited when I mentioned you and would rather like to meet with you for a chat, would tomorrow suffice? Around 4?' he said in a leap of faith.

She looked stunned, processing the news. 'Dorea had a portrait?'

'Yes, she's been rather lonely these past few years'

She held out her hand which he shook once more 'Tomorrow would be excellent Lord Potter, thank you' she said with emotion.

'No worries, and please call me Harry, we are family after all'

She gave a watery smile.

'Of course Harry, call me Andy.'

He nodded and left.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

Arriving home, he headed up to the Study to talk to Dorea, he'd move her later to the living room for when Andromeda came for Tea. As he was telling her about the meeting he saw the letter addressed to him in Hermione's neat handwriting. Opening it he read:

 _Hi Harry!_

 _Sorry for the late reply mum misplaced your letter! Paris was amazing! What do you mean you are a Lord? Of course the magical world would have such an archaic system, looks like muggle and wizarding Britain are not that different after all.! I'll have to read up on everything when we get back to Hogwarts. Did you choose your electives? I do hope you haven't been silly like Ronald wanted you to be, I'm sure Professor McGonagall will let you switch! Well.. actually she might not, she's been very unfair with me in not letting me take all the electives! I even suggested using a time-turner and she wrote me back deducting ten points before term even started. I think I may appeal to the Board of Governors what do you think?_

 _See you soon, Hermione!_

Shaking his head, he wondered how to deal with this, Hermione was clearly in the wrong but he knew writing it over a letter wouldn't be beneficial. Maybe he should just bring it up when they met up to shop.

He grabbed a book off the desk to do some more preliminary reading before his lesson with Dumbledore tomorrow.

 _As to not undermine the power of the Wizengamot, no House has been expelled from the body. However, on two occasions a House has lost its title yet remained in the body. The Noble House of Fergus lost its noble status after its Lord attacked the Head of the Noble House of Parkinson, killing him during the May 1789 session. Alexi Ferguson was arrested banned from the Wizengamot, and the seat could not be occupied until the Heir of the Heir achieved Lordship. The Ancient and Noble House of Selwyn lost their status as a Noble house in 1866 after the Lord, Severus, was found guilty of putting the Chief Warlock, Andres Marchbanks under the imperious curse. Although they have since regained their status as an Ancient and Noble House._

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 4_ _th_ _1993_

After assuring Effy he would not need a packed lunch whilst he was away at Hogwarts to meet with Dumbledore, he flooed over and was greeted by a gentle, joyful sounds of Fawkes. The red phoenix was sitting on a smiling Dumbledore's shoulder and flew to Harry to softly nuzzle his head when he saw him.

'I guess I never did thank you for saving my life Fawkes did I? Without you I wouldn't even be here' the bird led out a cheerful song before swooping back to its perch. Dumbledore chuckled and gestured for Harry to sit.

'How are you settling in in your new home Harry? Does it not get lonely, if I may ask?'

He considered his reply. It was true there had been a few moments in the past few days were the isolation of the manor and lack of company had got to him, for now he dealt with it through reading and talking to the elves and Dorea, but he would be glad to get away from the emptiness.

'It's interesting to say the least, not to brag but I think the Potter library may be even bigger that the Hogwarts's one!' There. A half-truth that Dumbledore seemed to accept.

With that their discussion started, after Harry had informed Dumbledore on what he had read.

'When the meeting is in session the doors are sealed to prevent outside interruption, and are usually only unsealed during a trial if someone needs to be summoned. When in session, the members are expected to act in a dignified manner, none more so that the Sacred Eight. When the session starts I, as Chef Warlock, welcome the members and read out the itinerary for the session. First we listen to the Minister to see if he wishes to propose anything, and then the department heads. After this I then ask if someone wishes to raise a point or issue. If a member of the eight does then they will speak first, and then I open the discussion to the floor. Have you seen the behaviour of the Members of Muggle Parliament before?' Harry nodded, recalling the times on the Dursley's old tv that he'd seen the elected members debating, jeering and mocking rather like school children.

Seeing his affirmation, he continued. 'The Wizengamot is not dissimilar from that although we are more formal and less likely to behave in such a manner. If someone wishes to propose a Bill they must have a detailed outline of what they wish to propose, and the support of two other houses is also needed, unless you are one of the Eight, after the discussion occurs a vote will occur to either pass or reject. However, someone may offer a counter proposal in which the Bill can pass but only after alterations that meet the majority's approval. You and the other members of the Eight have two votes whilst everyone else has one.'

He went on to explain that, although there was only one scheduled Wizengamot meeting a month, there could be more called in case of an emergency, such a thing had happened recently when Sirius Black had escaped. The August session would take place on the 28th at 9am. Apparently there were specific Wizengamot robes that he had to wear, ones he could get at Malkins.

'Have you decided if you will be appointing a proxy yet?'

'I think I will be attending myself. Currently I have no plans to speak in the meetings but I think it would be beneficial to see it in action and how it works'

'A smart idea Harry, I believe Professor McGonagall will be requesting a meeting to discuss your Lordship and what it means to still be in Hogwarts, but as you will be attending meetings during term time I believe it is pertinent to tell you that one benefit is that you are able to leave during term time. Although as you are a student still, it is not an excuse to skip lessons. If you are leaving you must let Professor McGonagall or myself know'

He nodded, he had no plans to skip anyway, although he was likely to change his mind when he had to attend potions.

'I have pulled the Potter voting records for the last 40 years, since your Grandfather became Lord Potter, as you'll notice that past 12 years there has been no vote due to there being no lord nor proxy'

'Thanks' he said smiling at Dumbledore, 'I have a question though. In the book it mentioned that no House has ever been expelled; what about if one goes extinct?' he asked.

'Well if a House has no Heir claim the seat within a 25-year period then the House is deemed extinct on the Wizengamot and they are replaced'

'Moving on, here is a list of the people who you will find in the Wizengamot' Dumbledore said, sliding a long piece of parchment towards them, it was divided into sections: "The Sacred Eight", "Ancient and Noble House", "Noble House", "House", "Ministry Personnel" and "Ambassadors"

Under the Sacred Eight Heading the names listed were:

 _Amelia Bones_

 _N/A – Black_

 _Andrew Davis_

 _Cyrus Greengrass_

 _Augusta Longbottom_

 _Charles Ogden_

 _Harry Potter_

 _Bartholomew Smith_

He skimmed through the rest of the list, he noticed that _the_ Italian Ambassador _"Caterina Zabini"_ shared the name of a Slytherin classmate of his. Whereas " _Arthur Weasley"_ was listed under "Personnel" as he was head of the 'Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office. According to Dumbledore, most of the heirs to the sacred Eight were in Hogwarts, excluding Daniel Ogden and Jeremiah Smith who had graduated the year before. He knew Roger Davis was a Ravenclaw going into his sixth-year, and likely to make Quidditch captain. Zacharias Smith and Tracey Davis were both second-in line to the Heirship being the younger sibling.

Dumbledore bid him a good-day, they would meet in two weeks and he would then find out what McGonagall wished to discuss with him.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

He flooed home, ate some lunch and opened the 'Introduction to Warding and Wards' book he had purchased from Flourish and Blotts, and started to read.

 _For centuries magical-folk lived without access to wands, yet still managed to channel their magic. Most were able to do wandless-magic at that point, a skill that has largely declined into rarity due to the current usage of wands meaning very few are able to even master a simple spell without one. However, for those that couldn't, they drew crude drawings and infused there magic with it, the most common one "Naur" created fire, a necessity to survive. These drawings, soon to be known as runes, became more simplified as the years passed, with common wards only needing a single but intricate symbol. Wards are made up of an entire other language that does not seem to follow any specific structure. It either is or isn't. The main use now is in the protection of homes and the study of ancient texts and languages. Various runes find their roots in different cultures and languages, yet when warding there can be combinations to ensure strength._

 _One of the most common wards in modern society is the muggle-repelling ward, the rune used to cause this is a very simple one an ø, yet needs to be updated and fuelled quite frequently due to it being permanently up and not containing a trigger for time. The rune creates a field of magic that acts as a confundus charm. However in the 1970s the rune was altered and can now either be seen as invisible to muggles or simply set so they ignore it…_

 **AN:/ Here is the next chapter hope you enjoy! For the runes I looked up elvish from Lord of the Rings and going to use that as my basis, but for the ø I think it is a Danish letter.**

 **Thank you so much for the follows and faves, over 200 followers now thank you so much! Double thanks to those who review, love seeing your views on the story and the ideas you have! Also since I've had one review on an earlier chapter whilst chapter 4 was out I'll respond below but next time I think I'll just PM if it's not anonymous on an earlier chapter :).**

 **In terms of why Malfoy and Susan Bones would mock him knowing his position in society, I see it as since they are not yet the heirs they can get away with acting in certain ways to other Scions. Although this will not go down well with Harry… unsurprisingly. Not too sure what I'm going to do with Narcissa, don't get me wrong she is a blood supremacist but don't think she really had a choice with being a death eater although she won't be marked. Ah well I'll come to that issue another time.**

 **Next Chapter- More reading! Feel free to recommend what you would like it on, Wizengamot?, ICW?, Defence?, More info on the Potter Wards? Or even a combination of them all. More letters, Tea with Andromeda, and potentially we can finally have a deeper exploration of the vaults.**

 **EDIT- Fixed the incorrect spelling of Davis, I originally spelt it as 'Davies' thank you to ThunderSphinx for pointing it out. 02/09/18**

 **Reviews:**

 **SON OF WHITEBEARD- I'm not sure the ministry hearing in year 5 will happen because of what I've got planned, but there will be a fair few occasions when we see the Greengrass' help Harry legally!**

 **DEATHMVP: Thanks! And there will definitely be politics and courts throughout the story, it is one of the predominant features that I want to explore!**

 **ANARION87- Thank you! :)**

 **MAGITECH: Ahh thanks for letting me know** **J** **, I'd tried to find it in the books but couldn't find the reference! This whole time-turner issue is going to be able to set up why Harry doesn't actually sit with Hermione at a certain point so hope you enjoy. And the self-study idea will actually be coming up soon although I have an idea for a slight alteration to make things more dramatic which I think you'll enjoy ! As well as what happens when Hermione tries to get his broom confiscated at Christmas….. It's funny because I love Harry/Hermione fics but also love ones that hate on her hahah.**

 **EMERALDGUARDIAN7: Thank you! I'll admit when I started writing this I thought that it would turn into the Harry you mentioned but as I was writing I realised that A- certain things in the books that I wanted him to get angry to just couldn't be part of my story as I am completely diverting his summers and certain events! And B- I think him getting angry too much would just be annoying, boring and repetitive. However, there will be reasonable anger towards certain people and reactions. And I love a Fleur/Harry story so may write one in the future, very likely it will be a Harry/Daphne fic this one ;).**

 **GOD OF ALL: Thank you!**

 **FRAEYWYN- Thanks!**

 **GUEST: With Ron I agree, and we will see that jealousy appear in certain situations but In this it is going to be more natural deterioration of their friendship as it can't continue the way it has now the changes to Harry have happened. With the other Potter properties there won't be anyone who has access in the way you mentioned but I do like your idea to include the elves checking for damage, which will be useful for Harry's plans for Summer so thank you! With the Twins I agree that if Harry was to invest then there would certainly be more beneficial, it would be more of a business move then what he did in the books.**

 **GUEST from C2- With fanfic It's okay to mess around with history and family! And Hadrian is a far more interesting name than Henry !**


	6. Chapter 6- Tea, Invitations, Greengrass'

Chapter 6- Tea, Invitations and the Greengrass'

 _August 4_ _th_ _1993_

After reading a chapter from the introduction to warding text, he moved onto start the book Dumbledore had recommended on the ICW, something Dumbledore was also the head of.

 _The International Confederation of Wizards, established in c.1600, is the first international political body focused on international relations. The body was created due to King James VI and I publishing of his Daemonolgy book, something that sparked international witch hunts that led to a loss of both Muggle and Wizarding lives. As the international tensions rose, a meeting in Paris was held with representatives from the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, Germania and the Holy Roman Empire, and Israel, chaired by, who would become the first Supreme Mugwump, Pierre Bonaccord. In the late 1690s after many attempts to protect Wizarding Kind the ICW followed Britain's example and took steps to hide itself from the Muggle world. There was scepticism and prejudice towards Britain due to the many invasions and colonisation, as well as instances were, despite the actions of the Sacred Eight and Wizengamot, the Wizarding worlds was once again exposed. Thus the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy was introduced._

This was particularly interesting to Harry, despite the efforts of the Sacred Eight the Wizarding World had become exposed a handful of times, although not to the extent that it had been prior to their unification. However, it was a testament to just why the Sacred Eight were revered so much, as despite the exposures it was far easier to manage as each instance occurred and the Sacred Eight and the Wizengamot solved the issue.

 _The ICW now focuses on dealing and mediating international issues that causes issues of exposure to muggles, as well as international crime and relations. The ICW primarily pass legislation that affects the countries that the members represent (see section 3.5 for full list of figures) The ICW meets twice a month to discuss any issues that have arose, however on occasion the body has called for emergency meetings. Throughout the late 1920s, going in the 30s and 40s, the ICW meeting quadrupled due to the Magical International threat of Gellert Grindelwald and the increasing rise of Muggle Fascism in Germany, Spain and Italy._

He remembered learning about Hitler, Mussolini and Franco at primary school when studying the Second World War. Grindelwald on the other hand was a mystery to him, he had a vague recollection of seeing the name on Dumbledore's Chocolate Frog Card and that he had defeated him, but knew little else than that. Perhaps he could ask him the next time they met.

 _The ICW is made up of members of over 70 countries, each with one representative. However, the current Supreme Mugwump (as of August 1985), who chairs and organises the meetings, is Albus Dumbledore of the United Kingdom, meaning there are two British members in the Body, the ICW representative for the UK being Lucius Malfoy._

Oh crap thought Harry. How could Malfoy be the British representative? He would have to discuss it with Dumbledore, it must infuriate him knowing that he has to be neutral as the Supreme Mugwump when the representative for the UK was a blood supremacist like Malfoy.

He decided to ask Dorea more about the Malfoy's after all her and Narcissa were family.

'The Malfoy family is an old and proud House, but deeply bitter and resentful of the position the Sacred Eight hold. They believe that as a truly pure house that they should lead the Wizengamot, although this purity is suspicious as its more than likely they have married half-bloods in the past'

'What I really don't understand is _why_ the Malfoy's would serve Voldemort, a half-blood' he told her, he had revealed Voldemort's secret to her when discussing his time during second-year, something which had shocked her greatly.

'Well there's two possibilities, either they do not know he is a half-blood, or the more likely theory is that they do know; yet do not care'

'But how can they preach purity then, it makes no sense'

'Yes. It does'

She went on to explain, 'Voldemort hated muggles and muggleborn, as did his followers, but he was the one willing, powerful and strong enough to rally the purists and to take control of Wizarding Britain. The Malfoy's want to be one of the leading families on the Wizengamot. And if Voldemort and the Death-eaters had won they likely would've usurped the authority of the Eight and the Wizengamot, and Britain would be led by the elite and bigoted pure-bloods. They would have no chance of taking control off Voldemort as he was too powerful, thus they submitted to him as that was the closest way they could get the power they craved.'

It all sounded bizarre and hypocritical to Harry, yet it did make some sense as to why they followed him. Clearly since the night Harry had lost his parents, Lucius had been working to get to power more politically.

He started to pen his response to Hermione, he remembered McGonagall's request for him to get Hermione to stop pestering her so made sure to add it in.

 _Hi Hermione,_

 _Glad you enjoyed Paris! And the Wizengamot is hardly archaic it's a system that helps protect us and further our society! My family has been on it since it was founded so maybe try not to insult it yeah? And I've chose COMC, Arithmancy and Ancient Runes which should be interesting as my family have a set of wards to protect their home._

 _Speaking of McGonagall maybe ease up a bit, you don't even need muggle studies! Maybe talk to her about self-study or something because going to the Governors is a bit of an extreme reaction!_

 _Harry_

He sent it off with Hedwig and got back to his reading.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 5_ _th_ _1993_

The morning of the 5th was a rather hectic one. Harry planned to walk down to the village to visit a nice bakery that the Butcher had recommended on his last visit into the village, he did not expect to walk into the entrance hall and see all four of his house elves furiously cleaning the already spotless home, according to Dobby 'It is not acceptable to not have a freshly cleaned manor when guests are coming Master Potter Sir' whilst the other elves nodded in agreement.

Harry had just shrugged off their actions and headed down. "The Beautiful Bakery" as it was boastfully called was actually rather nice and relaxing, he had purchased a Victoria Sponge, some Scones with cream and jam assuming Andromeda would like such a thing. He also spotted some treacle tart that he just had to buy.

In all honestly he was dreading her coming over and not for the first time wondered if it was all worth it, like the portrait of his Grandmother wasn't human so… But no, he shook those thoughts out of his head, it would make her happy so he would cope as best as he could. Usually when Aunt Petunia invited the nattering neighbours around for tea he was expected to serve them, honestly he thought he'd prefer that at the moment. Perhaps he could simply let them be and not join in. Yes, he thought, that could work.

The wait until 4pm was a long and irritable one for Harry, he had keyed Andromeda back into the wards and moved the portrait of Dorea down to the living room, somewhere she had expressed interest in staying in for a while for a 'change of scenery'

Finally, the Floo flared to life and Andromeda stepped out gracefully greeting Harry with a nervous smile, which he returned. Yes, his plan was a good one.

'Dromeda' the choked voice of Dorea rang out drawing her attention to the portrait.

The aforementioned woman stalked past Harry and up to the portrait with tears in her eyes, 'Aunt Dory' she whispered running her hand down the face of the portrait.

It was time for Harry to put his plan into action. 'Androm- sorry I mean Andy, I'm truly sorry but I have some family business to attend to and won't be able to attend tea, however please stay as long as you wish to speak with Dorea, Dobby will be bringing tea out shortly'

He hoped Andromeda would buy the excuse, after all she had said Lord Greengrass could not see him yesterday due to House business so surely it was a reasonable response. Andromeda looked rather disappointed as he turned to him whilst Dorea seemed to be disappointed in a different way, her stare made him uncomfortable.

'Oh of course Harry no apology needed' she said. A clear lie.

He nodded and waked out of the room, calling Dobby and telling him to serve tea for one. Even Dobby looked slightly surprised.

He went off to the study, grabbed the Potter Ward Book and headed to one of the comfy chairs by the unlit fire in the library to read.

One page in the book was dedicated, in red ink, to the "Protection of Cursed Naur",

 _Status Inactive:_

 _The Naur ward is to be activated as the last line of defence for the manor, when there is no other choice but to do what must be done in order to protect the inhabitants. A blast of Fire will erupt from the exterior of the manor, burning everything in its way until it reaches the Ward Boundary._

Clearly the Potter's were willing to go to any means necessary to ensure their survival, Harry hoped he would not have to use such a thing one day.

He went to the runes section in the library and found an interesting sounding book labelled "Naur: The key to survival and a door to death" hoping it would explain more:

 _The Naur rune was, as it is predominantly believed, the first known rune that is used still in Wizarding Britain. It was our carved by ancestors to bring warmth and light to the world and unto themselves. For years this remained in use, however its use, like so many other things, became warped into a force that, rather than bringing and sustaining life, caused death and destruction. The Great Library of Alexandria was burned down for instance, with many still inside, when a believed to be muggle-born c.200, who was enraged after being excluded by the scholars who studied there. The man carved the Naur rune into the side of a wooden desk and fuelled it with magic, sparking off one of the most well-known catastrophes caused by such fire._

 _As you will find out in this book the Naur rune has been altered many times to reflect the intent of the user. The Naur rune for protection will create a ring of fire intended to scare off those who you desire. Whereas the 'Cursed Naur' creates a dome of Fiendfyre that destroys all in its path, however such a ward is highly regulated and rare due to the large amount of power needed to activate it and control it._

He read on and on about the Naur rune for a good forty minutes, but kept getting distracted at his own behaviour that he had displayed to Andromeda. He knew from what his aunt, Dumbledore, books and even his own common sense told him that it was rude and unbecoming of someone of his status. He sighed standing, it was time to bite the bullet and join them. He knew that it would be good for him to get to know her, but he just wasn't sure how to go about it.

Walking down he stopped before he went in trying to listen to the conversation before he entered.

'-he seems odd, nice but _isolated_ ' he heard the voice of Andromeda say. He froze.

'I know sweetheart, sometimes I feel like he only acknowledges me as his relative _not_ his family' said Dorea

'I think it's to do with his other relatives on Lily's side who he lived with before, I'm a portrait and even I know he's undernourished, I wanted to mention nutrient potions to him but I don't see how I could without him locking me away' continued Dorea.

'I had hope when he invited me for tea that he wished to get to know me, but this "House business" excuse, I don't know how to feel' she explained. A pang hit Harry's heart, he did want to get to know her but he just felt so uncomfortable with emotions like that. They weren't natural to him.

He composed himself, walked back halfway up the stairs and went down again making loud footsteps as he went.

He walked into the living room and saw both of them turn their attention towards him, 'Sorry about that Andy I just had some business with Gringotts to figure out and settle', without giving her a chance to respond he called 'Dobby, another cup of tea for myself and Andy please'

She and Dorea both smiled, perhaps there was hope for him yet.

'I was just suggesting to Dorea that perhaps you would like to come to my house for Dinner with my husband Ted, and my daughter Nymphadora' noticing the slight quirk at his mouth at the mention of her daughter's name she carried on 'A strange name I know, something she deeply resents me for but even though I'm not a Black anymore there are some traditions I still stick to' she smiled.

'It's a shame I'm only Heir Black because, according to Dorea, only the Lord Black can reinstate you to the Black family' He told her, he had considered this last night when he couldn't sleep. Dorea had explained why she had been kicked out of the family for foolish and prejudiced reasons and it struck a chord with Harry, not being accepted by family seemed all too familiar.

'Thank you Harry, so is that a yes to dinner?'

Breathe. Remain calm. And accept.

'That would be nice. Thank you'

She smiled once more, maybe there was hope after all.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 6_ _th_ _1993_

He awoke the next day and followed the same routine, thinking of the evening before. Androm- Andy had been quite a kind person, she had told him stories about her time at Hogwarts's including the time she and her friend had snuck into the Hufflepuff common room to pull a prank but got trapped in there all night.

In turn he spoke to her about his time in Hogwarts, he had to call for Dobby to find some Firewhisky for her when she found out that Voldemort wasn't quite as dead as believed. When he had found out that there was a cellar full of wines and whisky's he had been very tempted to drink it there and then, and even more tempted when he had given Andy one. However, Effy had warned him how strong it was so he was a tad nervous to try.

Lying next to his coffee and bacon butty he spotted 2 letters laying on top of the copy of the Daily Prophet, in what he recognised one to be Hermione's writing and the other Cyrus'. He decided to start with Cyrus', he'd need to mentally prepare himself for Hermione's. Inside was quite the surprise.

 _To Lord Potter,_

 _To start, I must apologise for my abrupt cancellation of our meeting, although I am aware Andromeda handled it perfectly without me there. I am writing to extend an invitation to join myself, my wife Roxanne and our youngest daughter, Astoria on the 8_ _th_ _August at 6pm. Please let me know if that is acceptable, if so our floo address is Greengrass Manor 882._

 _Yours truly,_

 _Lord Cyrus Greengrass,_

 _Head of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass_

After reading the letter he immediately sought out Dorea, who now resided above the living room fireplace. They had decided to place a few blank portraits around the house when he had the time so she could move about more freely. He wondered why Daphne, his not yet official heir would not be there.

'You have to help me! What do I write? How do I act?!' she did not answer right away, most likely as she had been asleep and woke up to Harry furiously poking the frame.

'You will be fine'

'Fine ?!' he growled out, 'How can I be fine when I'm utterly clueless about this, the books don't mention things like dinner'

'If you want help you won't get it from me?'

He paused.

'WHAT'

She interrupted before he could get a full incredulous statement out.

'You need to stop relying on me so much Harry, Andromeda is family, real living family who is extremely knowledgeable about things like this'

'But-'

'No Harry, this will be so much more beneficial to you'

Grumbling he walked away, he knew she was right but still. He'd write to Andy later asking her for help.

He found the discarded letter from Hermione and figured he might as well read it whilst he was still annoyed.

 _Hi Harry,_

 _Clearly you should just not take up the seat on the body in protest! The power should be elected by the people not through pure-blood hereditary. I'm glad you took the same classes at me! I'll write to McGonagall about self-study but if she says know I'm contacting the Board of Governors, see you at Diagon Alley soon!_

 _Hermione_

He rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration, he would not bother replying to her, that confrontation could wait until he met her in person at Diagon Alley.

Heading over to the fire he threw some Floo Powder into it, called out the Tonks' address that she gave him last night, and disappeared in a flash of green flame.

It was time to ask for help.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 7_ _th_ _1993_

Today was the day he would explore his vaults fully. He had written to Sharpclaw after he got back from Andromeda's to ask if he was able to spend a few hours in his vault, he wasn't sure about how long the Goblins would wait with the cart and he had a slightly irrational fear that they would leave him down there. Sharpclaw had written back not only confirming that he was allowed, but also offered to help explain and name the weapons and jewels in the vault.

He flooed to the Leaky Cauldron and walked up to Gringotts, meeting Sharpclaw in the lobby and heading to the Heir Potter Vault first, he had been putting off collecting the letters left. The journey to the vault was filled with twists and turns at a speed that would rival his broom. It filled him with the same sense of joy as he felt when he first came to Gringotts in first year. He was sure he saw a burst of fire from round the corner.

'Sharpclaw, are there Dragons at Gringotts'

'Yes Lord Potter, there are 5 or so Dragons used to protect vaults here, mainly used by our richer and more paranoid clients, however the Potter Vault, unlike some others, does not have a Dragon guarding it'.

'Why?' he regretted that as soon as he asked it, it sounded as though he did not trust the Goblins, 'No offence'.

'None taken. Your family symbol is that of a Dragon. The Potter's are well known for their association with Dragons and the ending of Dragon breeding camps in the 1700s. To your family chaining them up in such a way is not approved of'

'However' he continued, 'It is not up to Gringotts to side with one family over another, something your great-great Grandfather never realised as he spent most of his time yelling at the then Potter account manager to free them.'

Harry felt a bit awkward. He could understand why his family did not approve but the way the Goblin spoke about his ancestor signified to Harry that he should not act in the same manner of demanding their freedom.

They arrived at the vault soon after, the large vault door had patterns of metal dragons engraved into the whole thing. 'Walk up to the door Lord Potter, the magic in your Lord's Ring will grant you access and open'

He did as instructed. There was a flash of golden light as the vault opened. Harry walked in, trying to comprehend the sheer size of the vault. Golden Galleons stacked so high and tight that they formed walls and paths to walk around.

'The Sickles and Knuts can be found at the far end of the vault in sacks' the Goblin informed him.

Sharpclaw led him to the very centre of the vault, there lying in the middle was a thick leather bound book, with a crude drawing of the symbol of his House on it.

' _That_ Lord Potter is your Family Grimoire, a treasured possession lasting since your Ancestor and the other Eight took control'

Harry slipped it into his bag, he wondered how much knowledge and magic had been fed into the book. He could not wait to read it and learn of the spells and magic unique to his family.

There were at least a hundred books also piled into one corner, Harry made a note to come back one day with a trunk so he could transport it all back. 'Over here Lord Potter', Sharpclaw had wandered over to a display case that housed a dozen weapons or so.

The one that grew Harry's attention most was the double-headed Battle-axe. The steel had thin purple lines running through it whilst the handle seemed to be made of a blue metal with runes along it.

'Ah yes' Began Sharpclaw, 'That was the weapon used by Arcturus Potter in the 1467 Werewolf Conflict, in which a man named Arnotus Cavell, a werewolf, rallied 200 others of his kind and fought against wizards in south-wales. A weapon-wand combination was very common back then'

Sharpclaw went on to explain the history of the other weapons, including a golden knife that had its routes tracked down to Ancient Greece, and a sword that looked similar to the Sword of Gryffindor.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 8_ _th_ _1993_

It was time for the dinner. Andromeda had been very excited to prepare him and had explained what would likely happen and how to respond to the invitation. She said that it would likely be a three course dinner, in which casual conversation was expected, with no House Business discussed. However, she did explain that Cyrus' wife, Roxanne, would likely bring some politics into conversation. The Greengrass' did not treat member of their family unequally, according to Andromeda, Roxanne had quite the political mind. Then he would be invited into Lord Greengrass' study for a conversation about Harry being a Lord and any business their houses may have together.

Harry was stressed beyond belief, he wished he had used his potions lab to make some calming draughts but had been too absorbed in reading the Potter Grimoire to bother.

At 5:57 PM he took three deep breaths, and flooed to the Greengrass' Manor.

Stepping out into an ornate foyer, he steadied himself, yet before he could look around he saw Lord Greengrass step forward, this time it was Harry who offered his hand. Lord Greengrass shook it with a firm shake.

'Lord Potter, welcome to Greengrass Manor'

'Thank you Lord Greengrass, I was honoured by your invitation'

'Please, call me Cyrus.'

'Only if you call me Hadrian' he responded with a smile. Andromeda had said this would likely happen, she suggested that if and when he told Harry to call him Cyrus then he should let Cyrus call him Hadrian instead of Harry. 'Sometimes adhering to the old-ways is more beneficial. The pure-bloods are more likely to support you if you use your given name rather than your nickname.' She explained to him. Her advice seemed to work as he seemed to nod his head in respect.

'Let me introduce you to my wife, Roxanne' the blonde kind looking woman held out her hand which he kissed.

'Pleasure to meet you Hadrian'

'And you, Roxanne'

'And this is my youngest Daughter, Astoria', she smiled at him, no ounce of shyness present.

'Unfortunately my eldest, Daphne, is on holiday with Lord Davis and his family so will not be able to attend'

The Dinner itself was rather nice, Roxanne and Cyrus had been a few years above his parents at school and had many stories to tell of his father's pranks and his mother's less than enthusiastic response. They had even been at their wedding, it was customary for the eight and a partner to attend an heir's wedding.

He found himself relaxing more and more, they were not as formal as he expected, perhaps to put him at ease? He couldn't be sure. In turn he spoke about some of the events at Hogwarts and his lessons. And how he was settling in at the manor.

Astoria was rather charming and excitable, she kept asking him stories about Hogwarts and if it was fun.

'For the most part it's fun, well apart from Snape, but if you follow your sister and end up in Slytherin he should be okay with you'

'Ugh how they can let that man teach, I'll never know' It was at this interjection from Roxanne that he realised he quite liked the woman.

'I know, he's a poor excuse of a person never mind being a teacher. We've tried to have him removed a number of times but Dumbledore has always managed to protect him' explained Cyrus.

'Always following your mother around like a dog, then he called her that awful word and the stopped being friends'

Harry had an inkling of what that word must have been.

'I assumed they were friends due to the fact my mother left him a letter in the will, I wonder why he hates me so much then?'

'Well, if there was one thing the entire school knew more than the fact he adored your mother, it was that his hatred for your father outshone even that'

Harry mused on this, it disturbed him to think how close they used to be. A slight shudder passed over him.

After saying goodbye to Astoria and Roxanne, the Lady Greengrass seemed to be restraining herself from hugging him. Cyrus led him up to the study and offered him a butterbeer. He was glad it wasn't firewhisky, he had tried it at home in case he was offered some and it felt as if his chest was literally on fire. He had to cast cooling charms to get rid of the heat.

'Let me guess Hadrian, this was less formal than you thought it would be?'

'How did you know?'

'In all honesty you looked absolutely terrified when you walked in' he let out a laugh and Harry smiled.

'Obviously I'm rather new to this, I had to ask Andy to prepare me'

At this he let out an even louder laugh, 'I'm glad you two are growing close. It means a lot to her'

'The other Heads of the Eight wish to know if you will be using a proxy or if you will be seated yourself, so they know if there is any need to meet with you at this current moment or if it can wait till the session'

'I will be taking the seat myself, how else am I expected to learn after all'

'A wise choice, feel free to Owl me if you wish to discuss anything before. Whilst our families have never been in a formal alliance, they have been rather friendly and respectful with each other.'

The talk was not long after that, Cyrus and he discussed the other members of the Eight, after this meeting they would not see each other again until the Andrew Oxfield case was presented in front of a judge.

Shaking his hand, Harry departed from the Manor feeling a lot more relaxed than he did when he first arrived earlier that evening.

 **AN:/ There we go chapter 6 done, sorry about the wait been v busy meeting up with friends back from uni! Over 300 followers THANK YOU SO MUCH! Just so you all know I've started replying to reviews through PM for three reasons, one reviewer mentioned that stories sometimes get taken down for responding to them in the fic, it also means the end of the chapter is not clogged up and bulky, and thirdly it allows me to go into greater detail in PM that won't take up like 2000 words of the chapter. So please do carry on reviewing I love answering questions and discussing Ideas with you all! I've gone back to chapter 3 and removed the part about their being two letters in his heir vault.**

 **So this chapter: The info on the ICW is a mix of what I've read on the HP wiki, and a combination of my own fiction for it. Harry being rather rude by not joining them for tea the whole time, plenty of reading and what I hope was a decent explanation as to why Voldemort had the support of many Lords and purebloods. As I've mentioned in responses to reviews this will eventually be a Harry/Daphne fic but not the main focus at all, friendship, politics and adventure is the main focus but the relationship will develop eventually, and when it does I'll change the tags to reflect that. The days are going much quicker now as we lead up to Hogwarts. Btw the labelling the days with dates will stop during the school year.**

 **Next chapter we will see Potions, Dumbledore and the meeting with McGonagall and then we will go through the summer quicker, and then we have the Wizengamot meeting so by chapter 10 he'll be off to Hogwarts!**


	7. Chapter 7- Potions, Friends and Benefits

Chapter 7 Potions, Friends and Benefits

 _August 13_ _th_ _1993_

There had been a particular issue that had been niggling in Harry's mind the past few days, ever since Andy had come for tea and he had overheard her conversation with Dorea.

The phrase _'even I know he's undernourished, I wanted to mention nutrient potions to him but I don't see how I could without him locking me away'_ played over and over in his head. At first he had tried to ignore it, but the past week with nothing to do with Gringotts all he could do was read and ponder.

He _knew_ he was undernourished, back in second-year he had found a book on healing that had peaked his interest, although he had put it back after reading the part on malnutrition. He did not, at that point, want to accept the fact that the Dursley's actions had such a resounding impact on him. That had been a dark time for Harry, his friends were being petrified, the school had turned against him, but it was in the first week of Summer when he started to process it all.

He had been at the manor for 12 days now but already so much had happened, the Dursley's seemed to be a distant memory for Harry but the physical signs of them still remained on Harry.

The most glaringly obvious issue was his weight; he was thin, with very little fat on him, and some of his ribs were on show under his skin, it was not too bad during Hogwarts as it was impossible to not put on weight with the sheer amount of food consumed during the meal times. There was also the issue of his height, he was around 5' , much shorter than the other boys in his year and it wouldn't surprise him if some of the girls were now taller than him. According to the book, a serious lack of nutrition could leave someone with stunted growth.

To Harry, Potions lessons had been one of the most exciting lessons to read about, until he got to Hogwarts that is. He liked the mix of the physical and magical process, he was not even put off at how long the majority of potions to brew, many taking up to many months. He had never been an impatient child, after all how could he considering the way he had been treated. Dudley on the other hand lacked a shred of patience, something Harry would later realise was not his fault. After all Dudley had been raised with his parents immediately responding to his every whim, the chaos surrounding his previous Birthday was enough evidence of that. He pondered on how Ron would respond to Dudley, he seemed to think Harry was lucky because he had money, he would no doubt be insanely jealous of his dickhead of a cousin.

Anyways, Potions had been an exciting prospect, until he had his first lesson with Snape. He had never felt so embarrassed in his life; the way Snape had belittled him was nothing short of cruel. He had later gone to the library to find the answers as they had not been in his first-year text book, it turned out that it wasn't until fourth-year that such things were covered. He had tried to speak to Snape about it at one point but the man had yelled at him for questioning his teaching and took 20 House Points off him and a detention with Filch. Ron had joined him in his anger; Hermione on the other hand, as they were not yet friends, had told him that he should 'respect _Professor_ Snape and have read ahead like I did'. Although, she had not really grown out of this; it was rather hypocritical as he found her actions with Professor McGonagall disrespectful as well, and planned to tell her exactly that.

Cracking his back he stood, deciding to finally have a full exploration of the potions lab. The Lab was located in the East Wing of the manor, located on the top floor with windows that could be spelled to let in different intensities of the light. Dorea explained that it allowed the fumes to escape easily and not rise through the house; in case of an explosion then at least it would not be the foundations that were damaged.

There were two large rectangle tables, made out of white marble, and an empty shelf on the wall by the door. There was a separate door that led to a small dead-end corridor lined with shelves, similar to the stock room Snape had at Hogwarts. The difference was that the shelves and tables where bear of any equipment and ingredients. It looked like a trip to Diagon Alley was in order. But before he went, he knew he needed to talk to Dorea about where to get nutrient potions from. They were far too complex for him to brew at his current stage of ability.

Dorea had explained that the best way to get nutrient potions was through a Healer, much like a muggle GP. However, whilst most went to St. Mungo's, the Potters went to a private medical practice called "Dickens' and Jones'". She explained that a private facility was better as less people would know he had been there, whereas if he went to the Hospital it would be likely that many would see him. It was unfortunate that she could not remember the address of the Practice, but a magical portrait could only store so much. Instead he penned a letter asking for a meeting with a Healer as soon as possible.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

Later that day he decided to go to Diagon Alley, it was time for the Potter Potion's Lab to finally be re-stocked after years of being empty. He had been reviewing all his lessons and spells from first and second year, but had largely neglected Potions as of yet. He had also decided to treat himself to some new cauldrons and phials, only for his potions that he would make at home. Snape would never allow anyone to have a cauldron that wasn't a pewter one as 'You are all too foolish and idiotic to possess anything other than the most basic of equipment'.

He would start off with the cure for boils and subsequently do a potion each day until they were right. Harry thanked every deity he could think of that the O.W.L exams were monitored by external invigilators; Snape could give him low marks all he liked but it counted for nothing in the real thing.

The alley was fairly empty, it was mad how many families left the Hogwarts shopping spree until the week before, but as Mrs Weasley had once explained that was when you were more likely to find sales and discounts.

'Harry!' he heard a voice cry from behind him. Turning around he smiled at who he saw, the three chasers of Gryffindor, Angelina, Alicia and Katie all walked towards him smiling.

They pulled him into a hug, asking how he was doing and led him over to Florean Fortescue's, who after seeing Harry gave them all an Ice Cream on the House.

'Well then Harry, clearly being with you has its perks' said Alicia jokingly, he merely stuck his tongue out to her in her response.

'Katie what are you staring at?' asked Angelina; she soon found the answer to her question when she followed her fellow chaser's eye line to Harry's rings.

'Oh' Harry felt rather awkward.

Katie snapped herself out of her gaze and smiled at Harry, 'so then, _Lord_ Harry Potter of the Gryffindor Quidditch team are we expected to clean your kit now as lowly peasants' if it wasn't for the smile on her face, even after Alicia and Angelina gaped at what she said, he would've felt even more uncomfortable.

Instead, after making sure no one could see them. He booted her in the shin and smirked at her. 'Of course Katie, your job begins straight away', she glared at him but they soon all broke out in laughter.

Explaining to them what happened over the past two week made him feel far more relaxed, as if he'd been freed from some physical bindings. When he had first arrived at Hogwarts and McGonagall had told all of them before being sorted that their house would be like a family to them. He had felt hope and was right to, that is what his Quidditch team was to him and to each other. A family.

'You'll have to keep an eye out for my Uncle Samuel, he has a seat on the Wizengamot' Katie informed him. This led to a raised brow from Harry, he knew there was a Noble Bell family but he had not made the connection to his classmate.

She went on to elaborate, 'we are a relatively new House, and since my brother and I are not heirs we don't have to act in formal ways unless the situation demands it, and you kicking me in the shin is definitely not a situation that demands it' she finished with a cheeky wink.

'I had wondered about your clothes; seems you finally came into some fashion sense as well as your estate' inputted Angelina, and within that their conversation resumed.

After leaving the trio, after many hugs, Harry made is way to "Slug and Jigger's Apothecary' to stock up on his items, excluding ones he would need in third year as he would get them when he met Hermione and Ron.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 15_ _th_ _1993_

The morning of the 15th Harry rose slightly earlier than usual, and tucked into a large breakfast. The reason for this was because he had received a reply from the Private Healers his family went to, confirming an appointment for the 15th at 9am. In all honesty he did not feel nervous, after all he had a good idea of what the Healer would say and likely prescribe him.

Just before 9 he flooed to the Practice, and after a five-minute delay the receptionist ushered him into a spacious office where he was greeted by Healer Smithson.

'Lord Potter' he greeted, after Harry had held his hand out.

'Healer Smithson, thank you for seeing me' Harry responded whilst shaking the man's hand.

'Please take a seat on the bed my lord'

Dorea had advised him to not allow the Healer to use his name as it maintained professionalism and an objective view on the Healer's behalf.

'Now what seems to be troubling you?'

Harry cleared his throat.

'To put it simply, I believe I have a mild case of malnutrition and stunted growth due to my upbringing. I had planned to make the nutrient potions myself, I found a recipe in a book, but do not yet require the skill and have no wish to do my body any more harm' He stated, trying not to rush through it and ensuring he kept his voice levelled.

Healer Smithson did nothing but nod his head slightly at the end of Harry's diatribe, and took a matter of seconds to start speaking.

'You were correct in the fact you should not attempt to make nutrient potions yourself, an incorrect dosage of the potion could do more harm than good, furthermore each potion must be tailored to the patient as different people will need different measurements of ingredients. The one you read in the book you mentioned was likely a general one'

Harry nodded along, the Healer's words made sense and left him feeling rather embarrassed that he had even entertained the idea of doing so himself.

'Just by looking at you I can see you are not as physically developed as others your age in terms of weight and height, before we discuss that I need to do some general diagnosis checks. Please remove your shirt.'

Harry did as instructed and Smithson put his wand on Harry's heart and uttered ' _Sonorous'_ with a flight flick down. Immediately the sound of Harry's heartbeat filled the room.

Seeing Harry's inquisitive look he explained, 'The sonorous charm can either create a loud noise or act as an amplifier, the slight flick at the end of casting adjusts the volume so it is not too loud. Your heartbeat sounds perfectly fine, so now I will take your measurements.'

His height and weight appeared on a piece of parchment hovering in the air next to him, after the Healer cast a silent charm on Harry and then tapped the piece of parchment.

The Healer spared a quick glance at Harry, just from his weight alone he knew the young Lord was right in his expectations of being given nutrient potions.

'As you mentioned my Lord, I do believe it is important that you take a course of nutrient Potions for your undernourishment. After doing some blood tests to ascertain the dosage you will need, the Potions should be available within five hours. You will need to take two a day starting this evening and then when you go to bed. Subsequently you should have one with a full meal in the morning and evening. As well as increasing your food intake.'

'Thank you, how long will I need to take them?'

'I shall prescribe enough for a month, then we will meet again to see where we need to go from there'

The blood tests were not too bad, the Healer cast a numbing charm on Harry's finger and siphoned some blood into a phial before healing it, he warned Harry that he would feel sore in the morning as his body processed the influx of nutrients, and to expect his weight and height to increase over the next two weeks.

'Is there anything else I can help you with Lord Potter?'

'In terms of my eyesight, well is there a way to heal them?'

The Healer smiled, 'A common question my Lord. Whilst there is no way, yet, in which we can fix your eyesight through magical means there are a number of alternatives. You could purchase contact lenses that last longer than muggle ones and can be charmed to your needs, or perhaps go down the muggle route of surgery'

Harry thanked the man and stood to leave.

'One last thing my Lord, and forgive me for saying. If you were not a Lord and therefore not legally an adult, then I would be duty bound to tell Child-Services of what I found in terms of your health. Due to your status and the confidentiality clause I am not able to do so, but I urge you to either remove yourself from those who raised you or report them to the Aurors.'

Harry said nothing. He did not owe this Healer any information or response. He had come for the nutrient potions, and in a matter of five hours he would have them.

He silently walked out, leaving to give the receptionist his Gringotts details so they could bill him.

Five hours later he returned. Five minutes after that he departed. Potions contained in a chest.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 18_ _th_ _1993_

Harry was glad that he had been the Healer's a few days ago rather than the day before his next meeting with Dumbledore. The past few days, particularly the day after the consultation, had been rather painful for him as his body started to react to the potions. He hadn't noticed much of a difference yet apart from his huge appetite, although he did seem to stand up straighter.

He was excited to meet with Dumbledore and McGonagall, although he knew he would have to discuss his bushy-haired friend with the Head of Gryffindor, something he nervously anticipated.

When Harry arrived at Dumbledore's office, the man was nowhere to be found. Harry could not resist the urge to look around. One thing he noticed is that some of the whirring objects that were on the side table at the end of the year where no longer there. He jolted when he felt something land on his shoulder. Fawkes the Phoenix, now in the adult stage of his cycle, nudged Harry's head; letting out a gentle song that left Harry with a smile on his face.

The roar of the fire caught both their attention as Dumbledore stepped through. Shockingly the man looked irritated, the look seemed like it did not belong on his face. However, he soon smiled when he saw Harry and Fawkes who flew to his companion's shoulder.

'You have my apologies for being late Harry, since Sirius Black escaped our Minister for Magic has been summoning me more and more to discuss the issue.'

'I can imagine that must be rather tiring' he responded as they sat across from each other.

'Extremely so, the minister has signed an executive order to release a contingent of Dementors throughout the country to search for Sirius Black. Including the outskirts of Hogwarts'

'Dementors?'

'Creatures of the utmost Dark, they cause fear and trauma and can remove one's soul. They have been the guardians of Azkaban for centuries'

Harry stared dumbfounded, 'And Fudge has decided to place them around a school filled with children? Surely the Wizengamot can challenge this?'

'Unfortunately he has done so. Since it is an executive order it cannot yet be challenged unless there is evidence as to why they should be removed. He tried to have them put on the school grounds but that was something I managed to talk him out of'

Harry shook his head, he had not yet had the opportunity to meet Fudge but he already had a negative impression of the man, particularly since he had arrested Hagrid so the "ministry could be seen to be doing something".

'I believe this meeting is better off as a conversation, thus I must ask, do you have any questions?'

'Honestly not so much about the Wizengamot, what I really want to know is how did Lucius Malfoy become Britain's representative for the ICW?' he asked.

'Yes that is rather unfortunate, the members of the ICW are voted in by their respective governing body. In the case of Lord Malfoy, he had the support of his allies, and bribed enough people to pass the vote by only five seats. Furthermore, a certain someone released information that his opposition had an affair in their youth resulting in a pregnancy.'

'It baffles me; the man is a bigot yet deals with foreign affairs'

'In two more years there will be another election for the ICW, otherwise the only way for him to be removed is for him to step down, or for a vote of no confidence in him'

Harry pondered this, 'When you say allies, do you mean there are sections within the Wizengamot?'

'Not formally, no. In fact, formal alliances are banned. However, you will see that many members gravitate towards each other and will vote depending on what the majority view is'

Their conversation lasted shorter than expected, and Dumbledore escorted him to Professor McGonagall's office, bidding him goodbye. It was only as Dumbledore left that he remembered that he wanted to ask Dumbledore about Grindelwald. An issue for next time he supposed.

'Harry' his transfiguration teacher greeted familiarly, before gesturing to the seat opposite her.

'How has your summer been so far then?' she asked, pouring them both some tea.

This is certainly a surreal situation thought Harry, but a nice one all the same. 'It's been odd, living by myself, having formal correspondences and being able to actually practice magic'

'No doubt, although I am glad to see you taking charge of your studies.'

He smiled, it was nice to be praised after all.

'Now the reason I wished to meet with you is so we can discuss how being a Lord will affect your schooling. First and foremost, you are not bound to the restrictions of Hogwarts, you may leave to deal with House Business if it arises in the week. On the weekends you may leave to do as you like, but in all cases of you leaving we _must_ be informed.'

Harry nodded, he already knew this from what Dumbledore told him.

'However, as you are student you cannot skip a lesson simply because you feel like it or want a _lie in_ ' she explained, her Scottish accent getting thicker at the end as she raised an eyebrow at him, there had unfortunately been a few cases last year when he and Ron had overslept.

'Furthermore, you have a choice. Since the 1700s a number of Private quarters have added for a Lord to reside in if he wishes.'

This stumped Harry. On the one hand having private rooms would be utterly brilliant, quiet and spacious; he could have his classmates around as well. Although it could be an issue with his friends, Hermione and Ron alike would moan about inequality and unfairness, but for different reasons.

'If I accept the room, am I still able to visit the common room?'

She smiled, 'Of course, if you desired you could even sleep in the Dorms and then work in your quarters' Harry doubted he would do this but was glad he had the option.

'Then I shall accept the rooms, thank you'

She nodded and made a note.

'You are also subject to detentions and the House Point system, and I urge you to be extra careful when playing Quidditch. You also have access to academic perks, you may choose to join the sixth-years in their apparition lessons or find a tutor yourself'

A light went off in Harry's head, recalling what he said to Hermione; 'Is there a chance I can self-study Muggle studies, and take an O.W.L. in it when I'm finished?'

McGonagall looked thoughtful, 'I will discuss it with Professor Burbage, and if she accepts then the two of you can meet and discuss how it will work. I would also recommend keeping it quiet from Ms Granger' at Hermione's name she seemed to sink in her chair with frustration.

It was clear McGonagall was losing patience, and understandably so.

'Now Harry, have you any questions for me?'

'Well, I have a few transfiguration questions if that is okay?'

Her face lit up, 'Ask away'

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

'Fucking stool!'

'Nymphadora! What have I told you about using such language!'

'Well you shouldn't have moved that bloody stool!'

'I swear if you-'

'Ladies please remain calm' the relaxed voice of Ted Tonks broke in.

This was the scene Harry witnessed when he arrived at the Tonks' home, Andy's daughter; the aforementioned _Nymphadora_ was a trainee Auror so scheduling a date had been rather difficult. He found it extremely funny to see Andy so stressed.

It was at this Ted noticed him and walked over to greet him with a handshake. Harry found the man to be extremely kind and quite witty at times.

'Is it usually like this when they are together?'

'Absolutely, Nym has never forgiven Dromeda for giving her that name, whenever she mentions this their arguments go up a notch'

'Harr- ouch Nymphadora stop poking me' Andy said pushing her daughter off her, and walking over to Harry.

Harry braced himself, it was time to be more familiar. 'Andy' he greeted smiling, and opened his arms to bring her into a hug. Andy, to her credit, did not stop and look surprised or make a fuss of his actions, although she did seem to hug him extra tight and wouldn't stop smiling.

'Wotcher Har- crap – oh sorry, Lord Potter' Tonks changed her greeting halfway through raising her arms in a hug when her mother poked her in the side. Harry laughed and took the initiative to pull her into a hug.

'Nice to meet you _Tonks_ '

Maybe it was the calming potion he downed before coming here, or maybe it was just him feeling comfortable in the presence of the Tonks', but he was coping far better than he, and seemingly Andy, had anticipated.

The dinner that evening was truly enjoyable. He had been fascinated by Tonks' metamorphamgus abilities, even though it was rather surreal when she copied him. Women's clothes were certainly not flattering on him. She also told him her stories about being a trainee Auror, and her "utterly psychotic but brilliant" mentor Mad-Eye Moody, a man who, according to Tonks, liked to sneak up behind people and yell "CONSTANT VIGILLANCE'.

Ted and he discussed various goings on in the muggle world, whilst he and Andy spoke about the court case, they had tried to convince Andrew Oxfield to give up on the court case, but failed. Harry would have to restrain himself from punching the bastard when he saw him.

He left that evening rather tired but happy. He and Tonks planned to owl each other whilst at Hogwarts, he knew Andy would do it anyway. He saw Dorea was asleep when he returned, he headed straight for his bed room, before doubling back to his office. He had two more names to add to his ward list.

 **AN:/ As of this being published the story has reached 400 followers THANK YOU - Very sorry for the longer wait for this chapter! Hope you like the interaction with the Chasers, thank you to MAGITECH whose review a few chapters ago about the lack of Quidditch friendships inspired me to write this scene. I had originally planned for the healing of Harry to take place much later in the story but it surely wouldn't take two years for someone to mention his health to him hence this part of the chapter. Apart from the Dumbledore/ ProfMcG meeting this was a bit of a filler chapter so my apologies! Although I enjoyed the arrival at Tonks, thought itd be nice to have some humour. I believe that it is a mix of the calming potion and truly wanting to get to know the Tonks' that has made him far more comfortable than he has been in the previous chapters. Next chapter we have a lot going on so may take a while to get out including the reunion of the 'Golden' trio (insert evil laugh) and we finally get to the first Wizengamot meeting. I am extremely excited to start writing his time at Hogwarts, plenty of things to write about with the new interactions. Please follow/fave/review and a special thank you to those who have already! :) Reviews mean so much to me, especially when you include things you like and what your theories are! :)**


	8. Chapter 8- Weasleys and the Wizengamot

**Chapter 8- Weasleys and The Wizengamot**

 _August 25th 1993_

The day had finally arrived. He would be flooing to the Leaky Cauldron to meet the Weasleys and Hermione to do what was left of his shopping for school. He was highly nervous to see how Ron would react to all the changes in Harry's life, and physically as well since his height had increased significantly after being on nutrient potions. He was not as nervous about seeing Hermione, in all honesty if she wished to start an argument he was more than ready to retaliate. There was also the stress of the next few days, he had the Lawsuit judgement tomorrow, a meeting with Dowager Longbottom the day after, and then the day after that was the Wizengamot meeting. And of course, the stress he was feeling about who he would be meeting after his shopping was completed

'Good luck' the voice of Dorea whispered to him, he had spoken about his anxieties to her about this very situation, and seeing him pace in front of the fire with some floo powder gripped in hand, she felt compelled to offer some comfort.

He nodded at her and walked into the fire.

He barely had a chance to gain awareness of his surroundings before he was tackled by bushy hair that had a girl attached to it.

'Hello to you too, Hermione'

'You're taller!'

'Your powers of deduction have no limits' he replied with a slight eye-roll.

She lightly hit his shoulder for that comment.

'Bloody hell Hermione let us have a chance of saying hello' the voice of his other friend Ron chimed in, he nodded at Harry and gave him a pat on the back.

Behind Harry stood the Weasley family, well the majority of them at least. The smiling faces of Mr and Mrs Weasley, Ron, Ginny, the Twins and even Percy greeted him. Mrs Weasley was about to push Hermione out of the way to give him one of her infamous hugs, until she stumbled slightly and stopped.

'Lord Potter' she whispered in shock.

The other Weasleys gasped and looked to Harry's hand, the rings of the Potter Lordship and Black heirship seemed to glow slightly in the light as the gathered company focused on them.

'Mr Weasley' he greeted, holding his hand out to shake, which Arthur (after collecting himself) shook.

'Lord Potter' the man greeted. His family, including a shocked Ron, echoed the verbal greeting.

Looking to Mrs Weasley he pulled her into a hug, 'You of all people don't need to call me Lord Potter, in private, Mrs Weasley'

Thankfully no one was paying attention to them, 'It's just not fair.' She whispered laying a hand on his face, 'you shouldn't have had to worry about this for years'. She could not help but worry about him, since seeing him on the platform on his first day when he was so small and nervous, she couldn't help but worry about him. She had given the headmaster a right earful when Ron had mentioned the bars on his window and lack of food, had demanded Dumbledore do something about it or she would. It was then that he had told her about the blood wards and how they protected Harry, she had nearly launched across the table to smack the man when he said the young Potter would have to stay there for the majority of the summer until he ascended and was of age. That was the Prewitt blood in her. In all honesty she had wanted to take the matter further

'I know. But it is what it is, I'm coping I promise. Although, and don't tell my House-Elves, nothing they make can ever beat your food.'

She smiled and moved to her husband's side.

'Lord Potter, congratulations on your ascension' said Percy rushing forward, always the formal opportunist. He saw Percy raising his hand for a handshake before stopping himself, managing to remember that Harry was now to offer it first, if he wished to. Which he did, mainly because it would have been awkward to not do so.

Ginny just smiled at him. The twins on the other hand acted similar to the way they did when he was suspected to be the Heir of Slytherin. He was glad that the Leaky Cauldron was mostly empty otherwise he would've felt embarrassed at what they did next.

"All hail Lord Harrykins-'

'destroyer of the Dark Lord-'

'King of Gryffindor-'

'and us mere mortals'

'WE ARE NOT WORTHY' they exclaimed at the end, going into a deep bow. It helped break some of the tension as the group, excluding Mrs Weasley, who looked mortified, Ron, and Hermione.

The trio of friends stood looking at each-other, unsure what to say.

'Maybe we should start our shopping? Mum and Dad are picking me up at two so we should get a move on' Hermione said, both to break the silence and because she really did want to start shopping.

The trio walked out in silence, leaving the other Weasleys to do their own shopping.

'How come you didn't mention it?' Ron asked him.

They had written to each other in the last week to confirm the day they would be going to Diagon Alley. Harry had been tempted to include about his Lordship in his letter, but didn't know how to bring it up. It wasn't like he could do it the way he did with Hermione.

'And say what? "hey Ron by the way I'm a lord now" and honestly I could ask you the same, why didn't you tell me about my family? You knew I knew nothing about the magical world but didn't think to tell me. Why?' Harry responded, this had been an issue bothering him since he had found out his heritage. He understood why others hadn't, he had hardly made an effort to speak to others and he was not yet an official heir. Ron on the other hand, and Neville to perhaps a greater extent, had made no reference to it whatsoever. Ron was his best friend; Neville a soon to be Heir of a Sacred Eight family.

Ron went slightly red, out of shame or anger he couldn't be sure. 'Err- well to be honest with you mate I didn't think it was my place, figured Dumbledore would tell you at some point'

Harry opened his mouth to respond, except Hermione took over the conversation.

'Well I for one think this Lordship business is extremely unfair and prejudice, it's just an excuse for the purebloods like Malfoy to hold power and use it against Muggleborns. The muggle system of Parliament is far superior, surely someone has said something to try and change it.'

Once again Harry opened his mouth to respond; this time it was Ron who interrupted.

'Don't say stuff like that Hermione, especially not in public like that' Ron said strongly, looking around to see no one heard her. 'The Wizengamot and the Eight are what keep our community running, sure there are arseholes like Malfoy on there, but the Eight, excluding the Blacks, and the majority of the Wizengamot are what ensures our survival'

This surprised Harry, he hadn't expected Ron to be so supportive of the Wizengamot, especially because he was always bitter about those who had more money than him. Ron's excuse seemed to be a half-truth, he did not sense any maliciousness on Ron's part; yet he still felt betrayed.

'He's right Hermione, I'm a member of the Eight do you really think I'm going to be against non-purebloods?'

'Well _obviously_ not Harry but I'm still right, the system is out-dated' she argued.

'Listen Hermione you're gonna need to stop saying shit like that, especially in front of me. It's just plain rude.' Harry finally argued back.

This seemed to shut Hermione up, although it was likely she would start up again when they returned to Hogwarts.

The trio started to walk down Diagon Alley, all trying to put the memory of their argument at the back of their minds.

'So Egypt was good then Ron?' asked Hermione.

'It was awesome! Bill, my older brother, took us around some tombs that he and his workmates broke curses on, he works as a curse-breaker for Gringotts' This peaked Harry's interest, perhaps he could speak to Bill one day about that. He didn't know what profession he wanted to go in, he didn't even have to if he didn't want to, but if Harry knew what it took to break through curses and wards, perhaps he could strengthen the ones around his manor.

'-and it didn't help that our Hogwarts Letters came to us in Egypt, Percy wouldn't stop wearing his Head Boy badge for the rest of the trip. The twins tried to trap him in a pyramid but Bill and Mum found out before they could. Honestly never seen Bill so angry.'

Although Harry felt bad for Percy, he did find it rather funny and burst out laughing with Ron. Hermione harrumphed, but soon let out a laugh at the situation.

Their first stop was Olivander's so Ron could finally get a new wand; although Harry was tempted to avoid the man so he didn't have to listen to the man talk about his wand's connection to Voldemort, it turned out Olivander was actually the Head of the Ancient and Noble House of Olivander, thus it would be rude not to.

The trio walked into the old shop, Lord Olivander nowhere in sight.

'Ahh Ronald Weasley, you're two years late you know' a voice called out from a row of shelves behind the desk. Soon a person followed the voice, as the old wizard stepped out to greet his customers.

'Lord Potter, yes Albus told me you had ascended to your Lordship. 11" Holly and Phoenix feather, it has served you well yes?'

'Indeed it has Lord Olivander' not wishing to get into a discussion.

'And you Miss Granger, 10" Vine and Dragon Heartstring. But you Mr Weasley have not yet had a wand from me'

'Err, no my Lord, I've been using my brother Charlie's wand but it broke.'

'Interesting, that particular wand was 12" Ash and Unicorn hair, it wouldn't surprise me if unicorn hair is what you will end up with'

And in fact Olivander was right, after trying just three wands Ron walked away with a 14" Willow and Unicorn hair wand.

They then went to Madame Malkins to get their school uniform, and Harry also needed to order his Wizengamot Robes. Whilst Hermione and Ron were being measured for their school robes, he took Madame Malkin aside to discuss what he needed. He also told her he would be sending for some new clothes soon and to keep his new measurements.

When Hermione was done he took a place on the stand next to Ron.

'I am sorry. Really sorry. I just figured that if you found out then – well- you'd not wanna hang around with me anymore' Ron said. Harry froze, not expecting Ron to discuss it again so soon. He glanced at Ron who avoided his eye-sight, how could he respond to that? In his opinion Ron still should've told him and it was selfish not to.

'Well you were wrong to think that. What did you think would happen? That I'd never find out?'

Ron just mumbled in response. Harry took a deep breath and said.

'Listen, let's just focus on getting our shopping done and having fun whilst we still can. Tell me more about the prank on Percy'

Ron smiled and launched into a discussion about just how annoying Percy had been, whilst Harry was laughing on the outside, he couldn't help but think through what Ron had said. He wanted to be angry, but deep down he realised that he knew that would've been Ron's excuse, the boy was quite possessive of his friendships. The discussion was over now but he knew it would crop up again sooner rather than later, especially when they found out about his rooms.

After stocking up on Potions ingredients, parchment, quills and other miscellaneous items. They headed to Hermione's favourite shop to pick up their textbooks. Along with the usual "Standard Book of Spells", this time Grade 3, Harry picked up the official texts for Ancient Runes and Arithmancy. The poor staff-member seemed very grateful when Harry told him he didn't need a copy of the "Monster book of Monsters" an appropriate title as they were all locked up in cages so they didn't bite people. Hagrid had sent him one for his Birthday, assuming he would be taking COMC. However, the shop-assistant's joy was cut short when he found out Ron and Hermione did need one.

'Mate I can't believe you're taking Runes and Arithmancy, what happened to our plan?'

Harry rolled his eyes and tapped Ron on the head, 'That was _your_ plan remember. Besides the ones I've chosen actually seem interesting'

'You're mental'

'I'm glad you're taking the same one's as me Harry, isn't Arithmancy just fascinating!' and launched into a discussion on what she thought the class would be like.

'- cannot believe Professor McGonagall will not let me take all the options'

Uh oh, she'd moved onto the area he wanted to avoid.

'Hermione why would you wanna take all the subjects, I can get Harry taking the hard subjects but five is too much'

'I can handle it Ronald, besides the school is hardly cheap so we should be getting our money's worth'

'But the way you've gone around it is hardly respectful is it Hermione? Besides, what about my suggestion about self-study, did you even talk to McGonagall about it?'

' _Professor_ McGonagall Harry, and no', her cheeks turned pink, 'she made it clear that if I pestered her with letters about it she would deduct house points, she said she will discuss why I can't when we return'

Harry just shook his head at Ron and mouthed 'Leave it' silently, if they tried to continue they'd not hear the end of it.

Ron and Hermione both wanted to go to Magical Menagerie, Ron wanted to get some medicine for Scabbers, who had apparently been sick recently; Hermione wanted an owl.

He let them go ahead without him, there was business he needed to attend to. Each time he walked past the new Firebolt Broomstick he would have to drag himself away; only in the past few days had he realised he had no reason stopping himself from buying it, and well not just for him.

'Mr Andrews' greeted Harry after the person before him paid for their items.

'Ah my Lord Potter, your order is complete if you'd like to come through to the back'

Harry did as suggested, and there lined up in seven cases, were seven sleek Firebolt brooms, each with a name carved in the handle on the opposite side of the make.

 _Harry Potter_

 _Oliver Wood_

 _Fred Weasley_

 _George Weasley_

 _Angelina Johnson_

 _Katie Bell_

 _Alicia Spinnet_

He had figured that he may as well splurge a little, because when compared to his bank contents the cost of seven Firebolts really was of little cost.

'You have the packaging and addresses ready?'

'Most certainly my Lord, all you need to do is sign these forms and I can send the four you have instructed'

After doing so Harry helped the man place all seven brooms in small boxes, obviously bigger on the inside. Whilst Harry kept hold of three, he pulled out four notes to add into each box for the recipient to read. After calling Dobby to collect Harry's shopping and broom he made his way to the Leaky Cauldron to say good-bye to the Weasleys.

Thankfully only Fred and George were there.

'Oi you two' Harry called out to them. He walked to the table and placed the two boxes down in front of the twins 'Hide these on you till you get home, and don't let anyone see them till we are back at Hogwarts'.

The twins opened their mouths as if to ask a question, but did not get the chance as the rest of the Weasley Clan and Hermione wandered through the door and over to them, causing the twins to hide the boxes as instructed.

'All done Harry dear?'

'Yes Mrs Weasley'

'Oh listen dear you might as well call me Molly' she told him, smiling. 'Now will you be staying with us until you go back to Hogwarts? We are more than happy for you to stay'

Harry was tempted to, but he knew he couldn't. 'Thanks but I've got a lot going on until we leave to Hogwarts, maybe another time'.

She nodded and gave him another hug, 'Right then Weasleys, we're off'.

They all said bye to him and headed to the floo, whilst Hermione gave him and Ron a hug before leaving to meet her parents. Mr Weasley held back slightly and pulled him to the side.

'I expect you know that Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban, all I ask is for you to be careful. The minister has everyone on the staff helping in some way, but try to be vigilant. And whatever you do, do not seek him out.' Harry went cold at the mention of Sirius Black, his Godfather as Dorea had explained. He wasn't sure what he'd do if he met the man, although he did have a rather disturbing yet satisfying dream the other night of him using Arcturus Potter's Battle axe on the man.

He thanked the man and assured him he wouldn't do so.

Harry sat in the Leaky Cauldron for another thirty minutes before gathering his nerve and walking back into the alley.

Diagon Alley and Knocturn Alley were just two of the streets in the Wizarding Shopping district. However, there were a number of others, just without the whimsy names. The place he needed to go was called Baker's Street to a little authentic French Café called "La Petite Pâtisserie", which on the outside appeared to be a nice yet expensive, a reservation was required to eat and drink there.

'Your name monsieur?'

'Lord Potter, the reservation should be under the name Lady Narcissa Malfoy.'

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

The Lady of the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy, and Daughter of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black, had written to him a few days requesting they meet. He had been unsure if he should or not, even Dorea had advised caution. Ultimately he decided it would be worth meeting her. However, Dorea explained that when he would ascend to Lord Black, he would have to meet with family members if they requested it. And as the acting Lord Black couldn't be seen in public as he would thankfully be killed on sight, he should take over what duties he could.

Lady Malfoy was dressed in elegant, yet causal, Navy robes that practically screamed 'I have money', she stood when she saw him. 'Lord Potter, thank you for joining me' she said offering her hand to be kissed, which he did.

'Lady Malfoy there are no thanks necessary, after all we are family' he told her, pulling out her chair for her to sit on. For a brief moment he wondered what would happen if he just pulled the chair out from under her so she dropped straight to the floor.

'Please do call me Narcissa' she said a hint of a smirk on her lips.

Crap. As she was family he was now practically honour bound to do so and to offer the same courtesy. 'Only if you call me Hadrian, Narcissa'.

She smiled, 'Oh but of course'.

'I must admit I'm surprised you wrote to me, after all I'm sure your son does not speak highly of me' This is what Dorea had advised, she had told him that even as a young girl Narcissa had been able to outwit others so he had no hopes of dancing around a subject with her, blunt honesty was the approach best suited.

'A silly little rivalry on my son's part would hardly stop me meeting you Hadrian, after all we are still cousins, one day you will be Lord Black after Sirius dies, thus I thought it prudent to get to know one another. And to apologise on my son's behalf, it does not bode well to have family members arguing.' Clever words by a clever woman, but they both knew what she was aiming for, the reference to family so many times was enough to cement it.

They both sipped their tea.

'And of course, as a family member you wish to know that you and Draco will still _remain_ in the family'

'Quite astute Mr Potter, you do not know me but your dealings with my husband and son are more than likely enough to have swayed your opinion against me. However, I am not a pureblood fanatic nor a Death Eater. I wish to ensure I will not find myself cast out of the family due to their actions.'

'I see, but you do not deny you are prejudiced. And what if I decided that your son should be cast out.'

'No I do not deny it; muggles are a threat to our safety. Mud- Muggleborns if not integrated correctly threaten our whole society and culture. And do not mistake me Hadrian, I love my son and even my husband to an extent, but he is the Heir of the Malfoys and protected. I on the other hand am at risk if I am removed from the Family.'

Harry nodded, it was clear that honesty was the way to go.

'Well although we disagree on your views, as long as I have no reason to remove you then you are safe.'

She smiled, although there was something sinister about that.

After ten more minutes of casual talking they stood to leave, after Harry paid.

He was curious as to why Narcissa started looking around, the place was currently full.

Her reason became clear as he then pulled him into a hug and said 'Dear cousin you have my thanks for today, we shall see each other soon' at a volume loud enough for others to overhear, before planting a light kiss on his cheek and walking away.

No doubt the news of Lady Malfoy and her cousin, the newly ascended Lord Potter would be in the papers tomorrow. This past month had been filled with so much speculation about why and how he managed to become a Lord, no doubt Narcissa was now capitalising this to increase her popularity and presence in the media.

Narcissa smirked as she walked away, her name associated as a 'close' relative was a good thing. She started to think, there was no doubt in her mind that Draco would be cast out of the family. Perhaps it was time to have Lucius give her another child, another son would do nicely. Lucius would not care about being in charge of the education of the 'spare', no this child would be raised in the ways of the Blacks.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 26_ _th_ _1993_

'Harry, are you ready'

Harry nodded to Andy and affirmed he was.

'Okay let's go meet Cyrus then we will floo to the ministry'

Harry felt sick, but not from nerves. Instead it was almost a sense of excitement at the fact he would be destroying someone who greatly profited from his life without his knowledge. The cheek of the man to argue that he had done nothing wrong had irritated him beyond belief. However, the assurances of Andy and Cyrus that they would win the case had calmed him.

After greeting Cyrus with a smile and a handshake, and for Cyrus to pass Harry a note from his wife thanking him for the bottle of some pricey wine she liked for her birthday. It was Andy who told him about the Birthday and wine and she had a small smirk on her face when she saw the note.

The Ministry of Magic was a large and impressive sight. The Atrium was long and filled with fires and lifts to transport people, although there was a rather _interesting_ golden fountain at the very center, with a house-elf, Centaur and Goblin looking in awe at the sight of a wizard and witch. Harry could imagine the Goblin wouldn't be too happy to see such a sight.

'One benefit of being a member of the Wizengamot Hadrian is that we do not need to hand in our wands for inspection as Andromeda does' he explained when Andy walked to a desk to hand her wand to a bored looking witch.

When they got into the lift Harry noticed about a dozen little paper birds flying around, half of which flew out on their level, the "Department of Magical Law Enforcement". They avoided the Auror area and such places, instead going left and through a labyrinth of Corridors to an office marked "Judge Cooper".

The trio walked into what appeared to be a small muggle courtroom. There was a raised dais where the Judge would sit as well as a stand next to it were someone would sit if they needed to be questioned. There were two desks on either side of the room for the prosecution and defence.

A minute after they entered, two women walked in followed by an arrogant looking blonde man in his thirty's. This was Andrew Oxfield. Upon seeing Harry the man did not look quelled, instead he opened his mouth but was silenced by the arrival of Judge Cooper, a man who seemed to be in his seventies. The gathered people all went to their required positions, as did a bored looking junior Auror, unfortunately not Tonks, and a court scribe.

The Judge Spoke first.

'We are gathered here to hear the case of the Potter Estate vs Mr. Andrew Oxfield, on the claims of fraud. The prosecution may begin.'

Due to Andy and Harry's personal relationship it was Cyrus who took point, there was also the fact that it added to the image of the Sacred Eight as supporters of each other as well as everyone.

Cyrus stood. 'Thank you your Honour. We are suing for the amount of 2.4 million Galleons. The defendant did knowingly write fabricated stories about Lord Potter and distribute them to the public without the permission of the Potter Estate which he claimed to have, as demonstrated in Extract 1 your honour' This referred to a collection of five of the books, all of which had the line claiming to have the Potter's permission in.

'This is a simple case your honour, one which should not have needed to be brought before you today. The defendant could not have gotten permission from the Potter Estate as Lord Potter was the only one who could've done so, and as he was the age of two when the first book came out was impossible. This is blatant fraud. The prosecution rests your honour'

Next the Judge called to hear the defendants side.

'Your honour, I must question the motives of the prosecution and defendant. My client wrote these stories as a form of thanks and respect to the Potter family, and yet now they are attempting to destroy his life for merely expressing his talents as a writer –'

'Objection your honour, this is a case of fraud not _restricting_ someone's artistic licence'

interjected Cyrus.

'Sustained'

.

Cyrus sat whilst Oxfield's lawyer looked irritated.

After a minute further of Oxfield's lawyer rambling on, she finished.

Judge Cooper rubbed his head.

'Based on the evidence supplied by the prosecution and the arguments from the defence and prosecution, I judge Cooper hereby order the defendant to pay Lord Potter 2.4 million Galleons in damages. You are all dismissed'

Harry smiled and shook hands with Cyrus whilst Andy gave him a hug, he couldn't help but smirk at the sobbing Oxfield as they walked out the room.

'Now then you two, time to put this money to good use. Lunch is my treat' he told his two very helpful lawyers.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 27_ _th_ _1993_

'She's scary'

'Well yes but don't let her intimidate you'

'Me? Intimidated? Never' he said with a role of his eyes.

He didn't want to particularly meet with her, well that wasn't true he was a member of the eight after all. But from Neville's stories about her he was hardly eager for their meeting.

'Get going Harry, and remember if she tries to talk down to you because of your age simply remind her that you are her equal'

'I will, thanks Dorea'

He said before departing to "Longbottom Manor" in the Floo.

When he arrived at the manor it was only the Dowager Longbottom present, Neville was nowhere to be seen.

'Lord Potter' she greeted formally, holding out her hand.

Except she did not hold it out for a kiss, instead it was to be shook. This caused him to pause for a second before he grasped it and shook.

'Dowager Longbottom, it's a pleasure to be able to meet with you in proper circumstances'

She led him to her office where she had a house-elf bring them tea.

'One thing you ought to know about me Lord Potter is that in private company of the Eight I do not offer my hand for a kiss, we are all equal and thus should be treated as such. However, when in the presence of the public and other Wizengamot members I am honour bound to do so. Have you met Amelia Bones yet?'

Harry shook his head, from what he had heard about both the Dowager and Lady Bones they sounded equally as intimidating.

'Well as she is the head of the DMLE we refer to her as Madame Bones and greet with a handshake, making me the only member of the eight greeted in such a way. To that end that is why it is only in the presence of others that I follow that particular custom.'

That was fair enough if he was in her situation he would want equal treatment as well.

They sat in silence, the heavy rain battering the windows was rather calming.

'The reason I wished to meet you was to apologise'

Harry turns his head to look at the woman. What on earth was she on about?

'Apologise?'

'Yes, on behalf of Neville. It appears he has neglected his duty not only as a member of the Eight but as your god-brother as well, by not informing you of your heritage when it was clear to him that you did not know.'

'Oh' he mumbled. He was annoyed at Neville for not telling him, they had lived in the same dorm for two years and hadn't brought it up at all. He had been aware that Neville's mum was his Godmother but not vice versa.

'There is no need for you to apologise Dowager, however you have my thanks, it should be Neville who should be apologising'

'I know, and call me Augusta, but I believed it best he apologised when you return to your schooling. No doubt he'd just stand here mumbling anyway' she said with a role of her eyes. It appeared that Neville's shyness had an impact at home as well as at school.

They both sighed, sipped their drinks and continued a brief conversation.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _August 28_ _th_ _1993_

The plum coloured robes of the Wizengamot certainly stood out against the dark colours of Department of Mysteries. To get to the Wizengamot Courtroom you had to walk down a corridor on level 9 as there was a set of stairs that gave you access to level ten. There were two other members of the Wizengamot walking in front of him, but had not noticed him.

After showing his ring to the security guards on duty, and walking through large ornate metal doors, emblazoned with the same symbol on his robes, he got his first look at the Wizengamot Chamber. The area was set out in a circular design with seats going around the whole circumference, stopping either side of the door. The seats on both sides of the door were not as fancy as the rest of the throne like chairs, he figured this was where the press and gallery members were located when allowed in for a trial. Directly opposite the doors a good distance across was a blue throne, with the words Chief Warlock on the desk in front. To his left were where members of the ministry sat as well as the ambassadors and to his right the Lords and Ladies of the Wizengamot. According to Dumbledore all the seats were mixed and not ordered by status, apart from where Harry would sit. The Sacred Eight had plum thrones on the highest level, the same as Dumbledore's but not blue.

'Taking it all in Lord Potter' asked a familiar voice.

Harry shrugged, 'It's very ostentatious, Chief Warlock'.

He turned his head to the left to see a smiling Dumbledore. The man had written to advise him he get there early to avoid too much interest in his debut.

Dumbledore subtly pointed to the three people already at their seats in his area. 'I am sure you know Cyrus by now and have deduced that the woman is Madame Bones, she takes her regency of the Bones House extremely seriously which is why she sits up there rather than in the seat for the head of the DMLE. However, if the DMLE needs to input in a formal capacity or trial then she will go to her ministerial seat. The man they are talking to is Lord Andrew Davis'

Lord Davis was fairly tall and not unlike Cyrus, although he had lighter hair and seemed a few years older.

Just as Harry was about to say goodbye to Dumbledore, a woman approached them. In all honesty, woman was an understatement. To Harry she looked like a Goddess, tall tan skin, long silky black hair and chocolate eyes.

She smiled at the two of them and spoke, 'Chief Warlock, I do not believe I have had the honour of meeting your companion'. Even her Italian accent seemed perfect to Harry.

Dumbledore smiled tightly, 'Well then allow me to introduce, Lord Potter this is Ambassador Zabini, she is the Italian Ambassador for the Wizengamot as well as Italy's representative in the ICW'

He shook her hand. 'A pleasure to meet you Ambassador Zabini, I've heard Italy is a beautiful place'.

'Likewise Lord Potter. Oh it is simply fabulous you must visit one day, the fashion, the culture and the politics are simply fascinating. If you are ever there you must let me know and I can show you around. Oh look there's Jean-Luc, I shall see you all another time' she said convincingly before rushing off.

'Welcome Lord Potter, to the world of making connections' Dumbledore told him before departing to speak to others.

He gathered himself and walked up to his seat, he was glad Cyrus was there, at least there was a familiar face.

'Ahh Lord Potter' he greeted with a smile and handshake, 'allow me to introduce you to Madame Bones and Lord Davis'

The aforementioned people both shook Harry's hand and welcomed him back into the fold.

'I believe you are in the same year as our heirs Lord Potter, although from what Tracy has told me you run in different circles' spoke Lord Davis, his daughter was not his primary heir but she was still set to inherit some of their estate.

'That is correct, although now I am aware of my place in this world I'll be endeavouring to venture out of my circle a little more.'

'That's good to hear. Just remember Lord Potter that not all slytherins are like the ones you are perhaps used to dealing with' No one missed the look he shot the recently arrived Lord Malfoy.

Harry turned to Madame Bones, 'If I may ask, how goes the hunt for Sirius Black. For obvious reasons I am rather interested'

'I'm afraid I cannot reveal too much Lord Potter, although in the last meeting the funding for the DMLE has been increased to help find him.'

He nodded and thanked her.

Within the next ten minutes the chamber filled up and Harry met the rest of the Eight, Lord Smith and Ogden both greeted him warmly before taking their seats. The Black seat was on one end whilst the Potter one was located in-between the Greengrass and Bones seat. It slightly bothered Harry that they weren't arranged in Alphabetical order.

Once everyone was seated the Chief Warlock stood, and in a booming voice commanded 'Seal the Doors', the guards did so with a heavy click sounding around the room.

'My Lords and Ladies, Ambassadors and members of the Ministry, I welcome you all to the August 1993 session of the Wizengamot. First as is custom, I wish to welcome the newly ascended Lord Potter to his debut session'

Harry could have killed Dumbledore. But he kept a smile on his face and nodded in thanks when the Wizengamot broke out into applause, some more likely sincere than others.

'Minister Fudge, is there anything you wish to bring to the attention of this Chamber today?' Dumbledore asked.

The minister stood. 'My fellow members of the Wizengamot, as many of you know in the recent days I made a ministerial decree, to have a contingent of Dementors released in Britain to hunt down Sirius Black. I know many of you are worried about the safety of the public, but I assure you it is completely safe.' He went on to bumble about the measures that had been taken and why his actions were necessary. Harry started to pay more attention to the woman on the Minister's right, she looked rather toad-like and could be seen mouthing along to it.

Cyrus subtly whispered to him, 'That is Dolores Umbridge, his Senior Undersecretary, hopefully you'll never have the misfortune of speaking with her'

The rest of the session went by slowly, although he perked up when he saw Mr Weasley, he had forgotten he was a Department head. None of the department heads wished to discuss anything as any issues they had, had been brought up in the last emergency meeting.

With none of the Eight needing to propose or discuss anything, the floor was opened to the other members of the Wizengamot. There were very few issues out of the dozen that peaked Harry's interest. It was mainly increasing fines for criminals and the increase of taxes for the benefit of St. Mungo's. Harry just sat back and listened to the boring tones of the Wizengamot for hours, mentally taking notes about who seemed familiar with who, and if there were any members that seemed to take a passionate interest, for better or for worse, in some of the proposed bills.

After what felt like an eternity after some Lord of a noble house finished his argument on why the thickness of cauldron bottoms should be regulated, Dumbledore called the session to an end.

Unfortunately, he could not leave right away as it was typical of the members to the go and talk to others, it was apparently rude to walk out straight away. He made light conversation with Ogden and Smith, both of whom left with an agreement from Harry that they would meet when he was done with his first term of the year.

'Lord Potter, I may not be able to give you any information about the current investigation. But as it has been over ten years I can track down his arrest report and trial record to send to you, as they are now allowed in the public domain' Madame Bones said to him just as he was about to depart.

'Thank you Madame, it will be beneficial to me to know what exactly happened during that time'

Walking down the steps he saw Mr Weasley finishing up a conversation so went to say hi.

Mr Weasley chuckled when he heard Harry complaining quietly to him about how long the session dragged on, when he suddenly stopped as the bumbling Minister Fudge approached.

'Oh Lord Potter congratulations on your Lordship' he cheerfully greeted. Thankfully the toad woman was not with him.

'Thank you Minister' inspiration hit Harry, Dumbledore had told him about the important of connections in this world, perhaps he could take that advice and do one Weasley member in particular a favour.

'You know Minister, Mr Weasley and I were just discussing his son, Percy Weasley who has just become head boy, he wishes to work in the Ministry when he graduates. He'd make a strong addition, I'm sure you'll agree'

The Minister went for the bait quicker than a fish.

'I'm sure he would Lord Potter, a son of Arthur here would make a fine addition to any department. Percy you say? I'll make sure I keep an eye out for his name' Fudge looked as if he was about to say more until he heard Malfoy call out to him, he quickly departed bidding the two goodbye.

'Thank you Harry' Arthur said when they were out the chamber and away from other's ears 'I'm sure Percy will be thrilled to find out what you've done. Now Molly is making a late lunch for everyone and I was instructed to not take no as an answer from you'

They both laughed and headed for the floo to get to the Burrow.

Inside Harry was happy, in couple of days he would be going back to Hogwarts.

 **AN:/ Firstly I just want to say thank you so much for the support, I am so glad I actually started writing this, the ideas have been bouncing around in my head for a couple years but only these past months had the confidence to write and publish this. This chapter in particular, and for some reason the Narcissa bit in particular affirmed to me that I will see this story through to the end, never will I abandon this. Literally had to stop writing for two hours during the Narcissa bit so I could write down all the ideas I had. Just so you all know this story will eventually get darker and more violent and may be changed to an M as it gets to the end of 4** **th** **year, not in terms of Sex or that because I don't plan to be writing graphic lemons into this fic.**

 **Quite a lot happening in this chapter (Over 7000 words)! So let's break it down. I've decided with the Weasleys to not bash them (after a lot of changing my mind). With Ron there won't be bashing per se, but when he has his moments Harry will not be taking it lightly. With Ron its mainly going to be his jealousy that causes his issues, but not necessarily just greed based, but the fact it makes Harry far more superior in their friendship. This is something we will see develop more as they get into their third year. With Mrs Weasley I could've easily wrote this as a shrill-manipulative- money loving woman who wants Ginny to marry Harry, but in all honesty I can't bring myself to write her like that, not only that but as she will be rarely in it there's no need to add another plot into this story when I have quite a lot going on already. So instead we have kind and supportive Mrs Weasley that, no matter what will happen with Ron, Harry will always respect. With Percy, its beneficial to Harry to be the one who mentions Percy, he better remember that it was Harry who got a foot in the door for him. Hope you liked the Narcissa meeting it was a last minute decision to add her, but I like the idea of her being a supremacist but not a murdering fanatic like her husband. She loves her husband and she loves her son, but she loves her life and her safety even more. Since I really enjoyed having her in this little piece so much she will definitely have a bigger, but not massive, role in the fic and her own little sub-plot. To the guest who mentioned how Harry should be friends with Neville, we shall see, he is far too weak and unimpressive to Harry at the moment which will irritate him.**


	9. Chapter 9- Back to Hogwarts

Chapter 9- Back to Hogwarts

 _September 1_ _st_ _1993_

He had to admit he was excited to get back to Hogwarts, he felt a similar excitement to learn as he did before he started his first year of schooling. It would be nice to be surrounded by people, playing Quidditch and eating at the great Hogwarts' feasts. However, he felt a pit of anxiety in his stomach, he knew that he Ron and Hermione would no doubt end up arguing, he felt ashamed to even ponder the idea of distancing himself from them; yet there was some part of him that felt it was inevitable. He would also miss Dorea and Andy, although he knew he could visit them during the weekends.

It was one thing to read about Runes and Arithmancy, but being taught it opened more opportunity to understand and potentially see them used in a practical manner. He hoped to become proficient enough to be able to add to his own ward scheme at the Manor, contributing to the defences just like his ancestors had. As Voldemort wasn't as dead as he seemed, he wanted the manor as secure as possible, if and when he came back.

After saying goodbye to Dorea he departed for the station with his trunk, he had already sent Hedwig along as she enjoyed the flight. He had told the Weasleys and Hermione that he would meet them on the train itself, he wanted to avoid the crowds of people saying goodbye to their loved ones.

Due to his early arrival he did not end up in the same cabin as the sleeping man he saw as he walked the length of the corridor, something he would later realise he'd be grateful for. His face was covered but it was obviously a new teacher, likely for Defence. Instead he found an empty compartment that had a good view of the barrier so he could see his friends arrive. Over the next ten minutes he saw many familiar faces arrive, including his three Chaser friends, who after spotting Oliver Wood sporting a brand new Firebolt ran over to him. He let out a small smile when he saw the foursome start looking around the platform for him, well, he assumed it was for him.

He saw Hermione wander onto the Platform and was about to call out to her, yet for some reason he could not bring himself to do so. Instead he observed her as she waited for the Weasleys, who came running through the barrier with around two minutes to spare. The assembled students on the platform quickly grabbed their luggage and got on before the train departed. A loud whistle filled the entirety of the train and the platform and with a lurch, the train set off.

It only took two minutes for his two friends to find his compartment. Unsurprisingly they appeared to be in the middle of an argument.

'-it's just weird innit. Hiya mate, tell Hermione it's weird for some grown man to be riding the train'

Harry stood to help put the trunks on the rack, 'He's not wrong Hermione, I would've thought a new teacher would just go straight to Hogwarts'

'Perhaps he is just here to protect us, after all with Sirius Black on the loose it might be worth it to have Professor Lupin on board' she said with a huff, taking a seat next to Harry whilst Ron sat opposite them.

'Hardly doing a good job at protecting us, he is bloody asleep' Ron said flopping into a seat.

It was as if Harry's head had been dunked into a bowl of icy water. The noise seemed to become muffled as he comprehended what Hermione had just said. Remus Lupin was to be a new teacher at Hogwarts. What the hell had Dumbledore been thinking? Surely it must have happened after the will reading, otherwise he likely would've been told.

'How'd you know that was his name?' Ron demanded.

'Honestly Ron don't you read? Through the door you could see his name "R. J. Lupin". Harry are you okay? You look a bit pensive' she asked taking note of how still he had gone.

'Not really no. That man, _Lupin_ ' he spat out the name vehemently 'was one of my parents' best friends. Yet I didn't know he existed until my parents' will was read'

'Oh Harry that's awful!' she comforted him with a rub on his shoulder 'But maybe now he is here you can resolve your differences. After all he is a Professor now so you will have to be respectful, at least when he is around.'

'Screw respect Hermione, Harry has a right to be pissed off at him' Ron argued in defence of Harry.

She opened her mouth to respond but a glare from Harry shut her up. She just grabbed her new cat Crookshanks and pulled him close to her chest.

After an hour or so of silence as they all got settled, Harry decided it was time to bring up the room situation.

'Listen we need to talk'

This grabbed both of their attention. Hermione put down her book on advanced Arithmancy and Ron his Chocolate Frog Card.

'I met with Professor McGonagall in the summer so she could explain what it meant to be a Lord at Hogwarts'

He did not appreciate the eye-roll from Hermione, nor the uncomfortable look Ron had on his face.

'And basically the main privilege I get is my own rooms, so I won't actually be sleeping in the dorms anymore…' he trailed off.

He both loved and loathed the three seconds of silence that followed his revelation.

'ARE YOU BLOODY KIDDING ME' anything Hermione wished to have said would've been drowned out by the screaming voice of Ron Weasley. She quickly cast a silencing charm at the door, predicting the fight that was about to happen.

'No Ron, I am not "bloody kidding" you'

'Oh well of course not! What a shocker you get more special treatment than the rest of us. What do you expect us to do next? Polish your bloody shoes and prepare your bloody Breakfast?!' he exclaimed getting redder and redder with each passing second.

'Oh could you just fucking quit it with the jealousy for one bloody second! I _WAS about_ to say that it could be a nice place for us to hang out but if you're going to be arsey about it then you can forget it'

Ron just huffed and puffed with his red face. Harry hadn't even realised they'd both stood up during the argument.

'Both of you sit down!' yelled Hermione shrilly.

'Ronald there is no need to be screaming all the time' she lectured to him causing Harry to smirk, 'And you Harry shouldn't be acting as if we have no right to be jealous, we are the same age and yet you are given your own private rooms just because you are a Lord. It-t' she seemed to struggle for the word 'It's morally reprehensible'.

'Oh get off your high horse Hermione. We all know if you had the chance to get your own rooms you'd jump at the chance; you utter hypocrite'

'How dare you say such a thing, and at least I would put the rooms to good use and study' her voice hot higher and higher in pitch.

'Good for you! I forgot you were the only person in the whole school who wanted to do well. Oh wait- you're not!'

'You're both as bad as each other' interjected Ron.

They both turned to yell at him, aghast that Ron dared to compare them.

'Besides Hermione even if he wasn't a Lord he'd probably still get the room for being Harry. Bloody. Potter'

At this Harry took out his wand so he could shut Ron up for good.

 _BANG!_

It was not the sound of a wand going off but instead the door being forcefully opened.

'There you are! Oi team I've found him'

Katie Bell stormed in the compartment, not noticing the tension or drawn wands, and grabbed Harry out of the compartment. Standing around him were his Quidditch team, who quickly jumped on him causing him to fall to the floor as they piled on top of him.

'Ow gerrof' he mumbled. He tried to push them all off but they refused to budge. For the next couple of minutes, they had him pinned to the floor whilst they repeatedly thanked him. He was pretty sure Oliver let out a few tears at some point as well.

'What's the matter with you three?' commented Angelina, noticing how quiet the trio were after the finally got off Harry.

'Well Angelina, Harry has been given private rooms because he is a Lord, it's absurd isn't it'

Alicia put a hand on Harry's shoulder to stop him responding. 'Why don't you come with us Hermione, just for a little chat'

Without giving her much of a chance, the three Chasers pulled her out the cabin.

'You're so lucky-'

'Harrykins, but we are as well'

'That's correct twin of mine'

'PARTY AT THE POTTER ROOM' They both exclaimed together.

'Never mind that' interjected Oliver, 'think of all the Quidditch strategy meetings we can have now there is less risk of being overheard'.

Harry shook his head in frustration, a headache was starting to form. At any other time he wouldn't have been bothered by the twins and Oliver, but right at this moment he wished they'd just stop.

'How could you. How could you get them a broom and not me?' Ron was quiet when he asked that.

'What jealous of that now as well? You don't need a broom Ron, the only way to ride one at school is to be part of the team which you're not. So explain to me why do you think you are entitled to me buying you one. Explain'

Ron had no response.

'Well Harry-'

'clearly it's time for us to talk to-'

'our ickle baby brother-'

'come along Ron'

The twins dragged Ron out of the compartment.

After Oliver thanked Harry once again, he too left. He finally had some peace.

He didn't know what to do. It disgusted him that Ron felt he was entitled to an expensive broom for professionals, that Ron seemed to think it was his duty to buy him such things. He stewed in silence. What would he do now? The past month he had really started to notice his friends' flaws. Hermione with her hypocrisy and total obedience to authority, and Ron with his jealousy and need for attention. But he had no clue how to just stop being friends with them. Maybe he was just overreacting?

Over the next ten minutes both of them returned muttering apologies. He just nodded and said nothing. Trying to get lost in his thoughts until he slipped into sleep.

The jolt of his body being thrown to the floor woke him up.

'What the fuck' he exclaimed, picking himself up off the floor with the help of Ron.

'This isn't right' Hermione told them in confusion 'we are hours away from Hogwarts'

When Harry had gone to sleep it had been light out, now it was dark and heavy rain bashed the windows as a storm ravaged the countryside.

'Guys' panic exuded from Ron's voice. 'Look at the windows'.

The windows seemed to turn to ice as all the warmth from the compartment was seeped out as if it was being leeched. Even Hermione's attempts at a warming charm to heat them failed. The frost spread to the windows on the doors.

The lights along the train started to flicker until they all went out. Harry stood up to lock the door.

But it was too late.

The door opened and a dark, cloaked entity floated into their cabin. A Dementor had found its way onto the train.

All thoughts of spells flew out of the trio's brain as they came face to face with the hellish entity. Harry felt the breath leave his lungs, his eyes blurred and the sounds of a woman screaming filled his head. He lost consciousness as the gnarled hand of the Dementor grabbed his chin. Although, he was certain he saw a blueish light start to form as his eyes closed.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

'Harry!' a shove.

'Harry you need to get up!'

'Easy Hermione let him up'

'What happened? Who was screaming?' he asked erratically, pushing his way off the floor. There was a sharp hiss of pain as he accidentally knocked Crookshanks over in his attempt to get up.

Ron and Hermione gave each other a quick look as they helped him into his seat.

'No one was screaming Harry? Professor Lupin cast a spell that caused the Dementor to flee, it was beautiful. He left you some chocolate and told us to make sure you eat it.'

Harry took the offered chocolate, getting over the fact that it was Lupin who had given them it. Gods chocolate really could heal anything he thought as his body started to gain warmth.

'Why the fuck did a Dementor come onto a train? They aren't meant to.' He exclaimed, no doubt Dumbledore would be furious.

'I've read about Dementors. They are attracted to the Dark, maybe a seventh-year has tried to bring in an object and a near-by Dementor noticed.' Her words failed to convince the others and even herself.

Harry wondered why it affected him to such an extent. The entity had reached out to grab Harry; surely he wasn't dark? Or maybe it was his connection with Sirius Black, but could such a being be capable of understanding that. What he knew for sure though was that he never wanted to see another bloody Dementor for as long as he lived.

It took only another hour for the train to arrive at Hogsmeade, he felt sorry for the first years who did not have the shelter of the carriages to protect them from the ravenous storm.

After getting thoroughly soaked by the rain they entered the atrium leading up the stairs to the Great Hall.

'As soon as you sit down ensure you drink the hot chocolate in front of you, on the orders of Healer Pomfrey, it will counter the effects of the Dementor.' The voice of Professor McGonagall called out to all the students. 'Jordan stop pushing Miss Bell or you will find yourself in detention immediately!'.

She saw the trio walking up the stairs. 'Lord Potter, Miss Granger a quick word', at the call of his title he saw many heads turn towards him, however he had changed from the shy first-year who used to duck his head to avoid the stares. He strode confidently towards her, Hermione following behind.

'Lord Potter after the feast I will escort you to your new rooms.' He nodded.

Her tone went slightly more frigid as she turned to look at Hermione, 'Miss Granger you will meet me in my office tomorrow at lunch to discuss your behaviour over the summer.' Hermione nodded meekly, the arrogance and anger appearing nowhere in her face now she was in front of her Head of House.

'Both of you go in and ensure you drink the hot chocolate' they nodded and claimed a seat by Ron who was sat with their other classmates.

'Bloody hell Harry you've shot up' said Dean when he saw him, 'looks like Seamus is the shortest now' he continued, punching the Irishman on the shoulder who immediately returned it.

'Yeah Harry why did you have to ruin my chances of not being known as the small one. Oh crap.' he started with a teasing grin but that trailed off 'do you want us to call you Lord Potter? Or is Harry okay?'.

'Oh Seamus how you wound my honour' he rolled his eyes 'of course you can call me Harry'. He'd be a bit of a dick to make the people he'd been living with and seen every day for the past two years address him by his title.

It did not go unnoticed by Harry that Dean mouthed 'Lord Potter?' to Seamus, who subtly gestured that he would explain later. That was one of the many differences between Dean and Hermione, despite both being muggleborn, Dean had more tact and acceptance of how things operated in magical British society.

After the sorting hat sung its yearly song it started its duties for the year. The only name that Harry took notice of was Astoria Greengrass who was proclaimed to be in 'SLYTHERIN!'.

Before the feast Dumbledore stood to give his few usual introductory words. 'Students welcome back to another year at Hogwarts. Before you dig in to this delicious feast I wish you all to be aware that I will be speaking to the Minister about the events of the train ride. The Dementors are forbidden from entering the school grounds but I must warn you all to be aware and do nothing to antagonise or draw their attention. Now I shall keep you no longer, dig in!' and with a wave of his hands the food appeared.

'Blimey that was a bit of a change from 'Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! and Tweak!'

Harry silently agreed with Ron, there was an underlying sense of annoyance in his words this time. Perhaps he could go with Dumbledore to meet the Minister?

The Hogwarts feast was delicious as usual. His appetite had greatly increased since being on the nutrient potions meaning he found himself eating as much as Ron did, although with far better manners than the red-head. Ron was currently, much to the disgust of Lavender and Parvati, alternating between eating a chicken drumstick in one hand and a small lamb shank in the other. It resulted in Hermione kicking him in the shin, which of course set them into another argument. Harry zoned out of the argument and started observing others in the Great Hall.

Malfoy was sitting there brooding whilst Pansy Parkinson repeatedly tugged on his shirt. It made him smile to know Malfoy couldn't do anything to him now, well at the least not confront him. He noticed a fair few looks being directed towards him; they all quickly looked away when they caught his eye. He spotted Neville to the side of Lavender, he had remained silent since sitting down and had not even looked at Harry. Pathetic.

When everyone had finished eating, apart from Ron who managed to swipe another chicken drumstick before the plates vanished, Dumbledore once again stood up to give a speech.

'Before you all shuffle off to your slumber I have a few announcements. First, please join me in welcoming your new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Lupin!'

There was a polite amount of applause for the man who stood and gave a slight wave. To Harry it was a rather unimpressive sight, his parents' had left the man a significant amount of money; however, the robes he wore were shabby and old. It was safe to say that he did not clap for him.

'Guys look at Professor Snape' Hermione jerked her head in his direction, 'He looks livid'

The greasy-haired git did certainly look livid. The hateful daggers that he glared at Lupin rivalled the ones he usually directed towards Harry.

'Yes yes welcome Professor. Secondly, Care of Magical Creatures will now be taught by Professor Hagrid now that Professor Kettleburn has decided to retire' This time the applause was much louder, Harry massively contributing to it.

'Finally, it is my duty as both Headmaster and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot to inform you all that as one of your classmates has now ascended to the status of Lord Potter, you are to refer to him by his title unless he allows you to call him otherwise.'

Harry had expected this to happen ever since the Wizengamot meeting, what he did not expect was the thunderous applause that would occur as a result of that statement. The Gryffindor table led the charge with the other houses following after, although understandably not as forceful as his table. Even the Slytherins clapped, some evidently just doing so as to not reflect badly on their family e.g. Malfoy.

'And finally the updated list of forbidden items is hanging up outside Mr. Filch's office so do find time to peruse it. Now then pip-pip and off to bed.'

He was met with the annoyed stares of Ron and Hermione when he reminded them that he would not be staying in the dorms that night. He couldn't bring himself to care about how they felt it anymore, sometimes it was best to forget about those who made you feel bad and would drag you down.

Professor McGonagall led him to a room close to Gryffindor tower which also had a portrait in front of it. He wondered just how many secret rooms there were in Hogwarts, hidden behind the portraits that adorned the walls. The painting was of a young woman weaving a tapestry.

'Password?' the portrait asked.

'Rivendell' answered McGonagall, causing Harry to raise his eyebrows.

'I wouldn't have pegged you for a muggle fiction fan, Professor'

'Who said it was all fiction?' she responded with a smirk, leaving him slightly speechless.

The room was rather spacious with a large window on the farthest wall that had a nice view of the entrance of Hogwarts and the forbidden forest. To the left was a fireplace of similar size to the one in the common room which had a comfy looking armchair and couch in front of it. As well as a small dining table and desk. It was strange to be in a room that had more neutral colours like grey and black, rather than the bright red and gold of Gryffindor.

'Now through the door is your bedroom which has an en-suite bathroom. You may change the password yourself by saying to the portrait the old password followed by 'set new password as…' and as a safety precaution you must let myself know as I am still your head of house. Understood?'

He nodded, it wasn't total privacy as he had hoped but he could understand the reasons behind it.

'Very well then. I shall leave you for the night; before I go I recommend you speak to Professor Burbage tomorrow lunchtime, her office is on the first floor and I have told her to expect you.'

'Thank you Professor'

When she left he started to unpack his luggage in his room. _His room_. The thought brought a smile to his face. The bedroom was rather spacious and had a window offering the same view as the living area, whilst the bathroom was far superior to the communal one his dorm shared. The bath looked like a small pool whilst the shower resembled a waterfall.

That night he slept peacefully, the silence of the room embracing him like a hug.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

As excited as he was to be back in Hogwarts, he wished he could've stayed in bed a bit longer but had promised Hermione and Ron that he would meet them early for breakfast. It was safe to say he was rather irritated when only Hermione turned up, she clearly felt the same.

'Maybe one good thing about you moving out of the dorms is that it will teach Ron to get up on time' she said glancing the door to see if the red-head would show up.

'Doubt it' he said and smirked when she went to kick him but missed.

They discussed the charms essay that was due for summer homework on the _Lumos Maxima_ charm that they would then be practicing in the first lesson. It took Ron another half hour to make it down to breakfast, just as Professor McGonagall was handing out the timetables. Ron flushed red when the Professor gave him a disapproving stare as she handed him his time table. The trio were extremely relieved that they did not have Potions until Wednesday. Instead he had double Herbology, followed by Charms, with a free then Ancient Runes and Arithmancy in the afternoon.

'Greenhouse four today folks, make sure you have your protective gloves on' called out the cheerful voice of the dumpy Herbology professor as they reached the Greenhouses. Before Harry had the chance to enter he was stopped by Neville who asked if he could talk to him. Harry didn't know if he was in the mood to listen but knew he had no choice.

'You asked to speak to me Neville?' Perhaps he was being unreasonable but he was hardly going to make it easy for him to do so.

'Y-yes Lord P-Potter' oh great he'd already stuttered.

'I apologise for err, my behaviour these past two years. It w-was an error on my part to not disclose what I knew of your position in society. Making such a mistake to not inform a fellow member of the Sacred Eight when I knew you were unaware is unforgivable. Yet I ask my Lord you try to forgive me and not hold the d-dishonour I caused against the Most Ancient and Noble House of Longbottom.'

Thankfully the torture of him apologising was over. The apology had clearly been rehearsed, it wouldn't surprise him if Augusta had been the one to write it in an attempt to do some damage control. He knew he couldn't tell Neville he was not going to forgive him; it would cause unnecessary problems that he had no desire to deal with.

'Thank you Neville, I accept your apology and do call me Hadrian' he needed to keep the personal separate from the political. Longbottom was a snivelling coward, but letting him know that would be detrimental in the long-run.

Once the rather lengthy two-hour lesson on the Valerian plant and its uses was over, they were finally free from the sweltering and uncomfortable humidity, he had to use a drying charm to get rid of the sweat dripping off him. Hermione was rather jealous when she realised he knew a spell that she did not. Despite having house-elves that would do everything for him, he found it prudent to learn some basic household and everyday charms.

Charms class was also rather boring, he was hardly a prodigy but being able to use and practice magic every day had made the _Lumos Maxima_ charm seemed rather basic and easy.

After seeing that he could perform the charm, closely followed by Hermione, he awarded them ten points and instructed them to help Ron, much to the red-head's chagrin.

Harry had decided to let Hermione take charge, not that he had much choice as according to her "I'm sure I would have come first if I had been allowed to use magic at home" and apparently him replying 'good for fucking you' was not nice.

It was rather amusing to see how red Ron's face could get. The fact that Ron only seemed to not be annoyed at Hermione was when she let him copy her homework was intriguing. How had he never noticed how different the three of them were? He spent the most of the lesson watching them argue, trying to stay quiet as to not lose points. Hermione did not appreciate it when he jumped in at the end of the lesson and helped Ron manage the spell, especially as Ron then thanked him and asked Hermione why she couldn't be more like Harry.

Harry left them at the end of Charms so he could go to meet Burbage, saying to them that he felt ill and was going to rest during lunch and his free; whereas Hermione had to go meet McGonagall, leaving Ron to catch up with Seamus and Dean to go to Lunch.

'Professor Burbage?' he called out after knocking on the office door.

'Lord Potter' the slightly breathless voice of the blonde professor echoed down the hall as she walked towards him. 'Sorry for being a tad late', he waved off her apologies and followed her into her office. Just from the appearance of the office he decided she might have been the coolest professor, judging by the Back to the Future posters she had on the wall, as well as bands such as Queen and Fleetwood Mac.

'Professor McGonagall told me you wanted to discuss self-study, correct?'

'Yes, she said due to my status I am allowed as long as I get permission from you.'

'Well from what I've heard you were muggle raised so the syllabus should be relatively straight forward. It is a mixture of learning muggle history, culture and technology. I am happy to approve your study as long as you meet with me every month to discuss your reading, and you sit the exam at the end of the year. How does that sound?'

'Great thanks'

He had expected it would take a bit more convincing but perhaps as he was muggle-raised and in such a position in society then she had little issue with it. She gave him a copy of the textbook until he could purchase one for himself. He returned to his room and took a seat in one of the comfy armchairs and started to read a chapter on the industrial revolution.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

She paced outside the office, her confidence seemed to have deserted her as she had walked down the corridor. She stopped. Be strong, she told herself. Professor McGonagall was a reasonable person and if anyone could convince her to allow her to take the extra electives, then it was her, Hermione Granger the brightest witch of her age.

Professor McGonagall took a sip of her of her tea, she had been sorely tempted to add a little something extra to it; whisky or a potion either would do. It pained her to admit how disappointed in Miss Granger she was, the girl showed exceptional talent and knowledge yet her persona would hinder her greatly. She had cast a charm on her door so she could see through it and hear the conversations outside, it was particularly useful when dealing with the Weasley twins as she could then hear them colluding an excuse. The girl pacing outside her door would need to learn how the world worked, simply being the 'brightest witch of her age' as the girl kept muttering would do her no favours. She was intelligent but 'brightest witch' was an overestimation.

'Come in Miss Granger' she called, dispelling the charm and opening the door with a wave of her wand.

The two witches sat face to face, one putting on a face of determination, the other hiding their expression completely.

'Miss Granger I must say how disappointed I have been in your behaviour this past summer. At the end of second year it was explained that only three electives could be taken, yet despite this you have constantly hounded and even dared to try berate me for my refusals. This behaviour is inappropriate and unbecoming of a Gryffindor third year. _Despite_ your excellent marks you are not entitled to then get preferential treatment especially not off the ministry who would quite frankly laugh in my face if I even dared to ponder the idea of asking them for a time-turner so a thirteen-year-old can study more. Did you really believe that would happen? Or have I greatly underestimated your intelligence?'

Hermione stuttered. She thought she would've been able to at least argue her side and the Professor would listen. No one had ever doubted her intelligence before, and whilst her behaviour may be inappropriate it was to benefit her development. How could the Professor not see that?

'But it isn't fair, my parents pay a lot of money for my education here and it is only right that I have access to all learning opportunity's. And well, Harry gets unfair preferential treatment because he is a Lord but an average student at best. So it is rather unfair for you to say that there isn't preferential treatment.' she rushed it out.

Instead of feeling more annoyed she actually felt some sympathy for the girl, it was time for her to realise how society worked. She was aware of how the girl was perceived by many of her peers, if she continued to question Lord Potter's status and the Wizengamot then she would find herself ostracised from both her classmates and society. Whilst Miss Granger would not be the first student that she had to sit down and explain such a thing; she had no doubt it would prove difficult to do so. It was both good and bad that they were both free after lunch, the conversation would probably take a while.

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

He made it to the Ancient Runes class room with just a couple of minutes to spare. He saw Hermione also quickly walking to the room looking solemn, clearly subdued from her conversation.

'Harry can I have a word' she asked as she caught up to him. He stopped, finally she would be apologising.

'Listen Harry', she seemed weary at what she was about to say.

'After talking with Professor McGonagall, I think it's best you and I take a break from our friendship. You have changed so much and the Harry that I know would realise the immorality of the status you have. It is unjust and undemocratic and against what I believe. Maybe one day things could be better between us.'

And with that she walked down the corridor two the runes class, past an arguing Susan Bones and Hannah Abbot. He was surprised in all honesty; despite the fact he had been contemplating ending his friendship with her he hardly expected for it to go the opposite way. Especially with the reasons she had provided. He knew that even though she labeled it as a 'break' their relationship wouldn't be repaired. He thought he would feel slightly sad when it eventually happened, but instead found himself unbothered. Things had deteriorated at such a rapid change over the summer in terms of their friendship, and coupled with the changes in his life it would likely be for the best. After all it would reflect badly on him if he had a friend who challenged society and tried to undermine his status as one of the sacred eight.

He saw Hannah Abbot walk into the classroom with tears running down her face whilst Susan Bones had a mixture of annoyance and amusement on her face. It was crazy to think that the girl in front of him had been raised by Amelia Bones who was rather formal and serious, whereas her niece was known in school for being vain and superficial. It looked like Hannah Abbot just found herself outed from the clique. Both Neville and Susan were very different than the people who controlled their estate.

Susan noticed Harry walking towards her and schooled a smile on her face, 'Hello Lord Potter'. God even that sounded bitchy. He returned the smile, 'Hi Susan, call me Hadrian. After all you will be Lady Bones one day.'

'Of course Hadrian, and please do forgive me for my behaviour towards you last year, the fear of the unknown truly did make me act in a foolish way' A lie. She had loved the drama that the last year had brought, it cemented her position at the top of the second-year Hufflepuff hierarchy. 'No need to apologise, fear does strange things to us all'.

The two walked into the ancient runes classroom and Harry saw the note pinned to the door; "Third Years- I will be delayed by ten minutes, please feel free to take a seat and get to know your peers'. Unlike the majority of classes this one had an assortment of the four houses. Unsurprisingly every Ravenclaw student had taken this particular elective, whilst it was just Harry, Hermione and Fay Dunbar from Gryffindor, and a few Hufflepuffs, including Justin Finch-Fletchley. There were only three seats available, one at the table of Hufflepuffs and two at the table of Daphne Greengrass and Blaise Zabini.

Mind made up, he walked to the table at the back of the room. He was surprised when he saw Susan following him, he quickly glanced at the table of Hufflepuffs and saw their dismayed look that their leader would not be sitting with them. 'Greengrass, Zabini' he nodded to the two of them as he and Susan sat down opposite them.

Daphne Greengrass, the blonde soon to be official Heiress of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass, had not particularly caught his attention the past two years. She did not hang out with Malfoy and his gaggle of followers, typically hanging around with the boy next to her and Tracey Davis. Although he had noticed her direct nasty looks towards Hermione over the years. Blaise Zabini on the other hand he had noticed even less, the Italian boy was rather quiet and only answered questions when asked; the loudest one out of their trio was Davis who was nowhere to be found.

'Lord Potter' they both greeted. He responded as usual for them to call him Hadrian. It suddenly struck him how much power was at the table; A lord of one of the Eight, two people who would one day become Head of their own House that was part of the Eight, and the son of the Italian ambassador who also happened to be a member of the ICW. Three, maybe four, of the people sat at the table had futures in the political arena.

'So Susan' started Daphne, 'how come you're not sitting with your sheep- sorry, I mean friends', well that got awkward rather fast thought Harry. He glanced at Blaise who rolled his eyes and shook his head when he caught Harry's glance.

'Sometimes a break is needed, they are ever so dependent on me'

'A fact I'm sure you are devastated about' he interjected, causing the two Slytherins to smirk and the Hufflepuff to lightly elbow him.

'What about you Daphne, I notice Tracey isn't even in the school anymore. Just you and Blaise left, maybe you could get Bullstrode to complete your trio'

They all glanced at the table of three on the other side of the classroom that held Theo Nott, Pansy Parkinson and Millicent Bullstrode, all of whom were known to be quite vocal in their dislike of muggleborns. Harry was thankful but also rather surprised that Malfoy had not taken the elective.

'Actually Lord Davis has decided to send her to Beauxbatons' that was news to Harry, her father had not mentioned it to Harry when they spoke at the meeting. Perhaps he was hoping to make allies in France.

'Looks like we are all having issues with keeping friends around, any reason Granger is not sitting by you Hadrian?' the way Blaise asked it made it seem like he already knew the answer to it.

'It was decided that we should part ways, Hermione isn't really a fan of the Wizengamot or their power. I am sure you all understand why I had to stop being friends with her' there was no chance he would be letting them know that she was the one who had broken off their friendship. One lesson he had learnt from both Dorea and Andy was that appearance played a significant part in their society.

'A fact I'm sure you are devastated about' said Susan, echoing the words he had originally directed towards her.

As they waited for the Professor to arrive the foursome made polite small talk, with little awkwardness. Daphne congratulated him on his win at the hearing against Andrew Oxfield, to which he told her it was down to the work of her father and Andy's hard work that ensured the case won.

'I can't believe someone would be stupid enough to try and challenge such a thing in court, particularly due to your status and the lack of evidence that he had permission from your estate' said Blaise, evidently Daphne had informed him of the details that her father probably told her.

'Are you really Blaise? Most of _them_ do have an over-inflated ego and belief on how society could work.'

'Them?' asked Susan and Harry together, perhaps Daphne truly did have bigoted views; but chose to keep them to herself. She was saved from answering by the arrival of the Professor.

'Sorry I am late everyone I had to help Madame Pomfrey with a student who tried to meddle with a rune the foolish boy. Welcome to your first lesson in the study of Ancient Runes, my name is Professor Babbling; over the next few years you will learn a plethora of things, such as learning how to translate a rune without any context or knowledge of its history as well as learning how to both create runes and the theory of how they can be broken and altered. Let me warn you now, this is not an easy subject and if you are unable to keep up with the content you will be dropped from this class. Understood?'

They all nodded, pen to parchment ready to take notes.

'Good. The first rune you will be learning about is the _naur_ rune, who hear can tell me the purpose of the rune?'

Over half the class raised their hand, Hermione trying to make hers reach the highest.

Professor Babling ignored all these and instead pointed to Pansy Parkinson. 'You. What is your name?'

Pansy suddenly looked nervous, 'Pansy Parkinson, Professor'

'And tell me Miss Parkinson, why have you not held your hand up to answer the question?'

'B-because I don't know?'

'One point from Slytherin. And a point from everyone who did not have their hand up.'

No one dared to protest.

'I expect you all to be prepared for each lesson you will be assigned a hefty chunk reading and an essay each week. Each of you will be held to high expectations. Now you, your name?'

This time she pointed at Susan who replied.

'Perhaps you can enlighten your peers Miss Bones.'

"Of course Professor. The _naur_ rune symbolises fire and is one of the oldest and most Ancient Runes that has been recorded…'

 _o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

 _Later that evening_

There was a knock at the door.

'Come in' she called. Some days she wished she could keep the door locked forever and have some peace for a change.

In walked Amanda Jameson, one of the junior Aurors. She seemed hesitant to speak which was rather unusual for her; both her and Nymphadora Tonks were known for their inappropriate energy and excitement.

'Get to the point Jameson, what is the matter' In her line of work it was necessary to be efficient and get straight to the point. Something Jameson had evidently forgotten about.

She stepped forward and placed a folder on her desk. 'It's the arrest report for Sirius Black like you asked for' she hesitated 'But there's an inconsistency.'

She looked up from the file sharply, 'Inconsistency?'. That was never a good word to be associated with.

'Yes it's just I didn't want to bring it to your attention unless I was absolutely sure. The arrest report is there and filled out correctly, but there is no record of any trial. None whatsoever. And not only that but the file was extremely difficult to find, it was buried in so much paperwork that it took a long time to find it.'

Fuck fuck fuck this was not good, if there was no record then it meant either someone had made a grievous admin error, or even worse. Sirius Black had never had a trial to begin with. She pulled out the bottle of firewhisky and glass that she had stored in her desk and poured herself a generous helping.

'Send in Shacklebolt and Scrimgeour immediately and discreetly. And mention this to no one.'

This clusterfuck would take the ministry by storm.

 **AN:/ Here we go off to Hogwarts! Sorry this chapter took longer to come out but I took a slight break after writing the last chapter because I worked all week on it- oops turned out to be a month without a new chapter (plus I have been extremely stressed)! When I look back at my early chapters I'm like how did I write so little and think that was enough lol (This chapter has my highest work count!). With Harry, Ron and Hermione it's actually quite difficult to write them arguing, like I know what I want to happen but it is difficult without it looking a bit cringe, ah well they will likely really only be active in the next chapter or two. I Not sure how quick or slow the school year will go by but I cannot see it dragging on for too many chapters.**

 **For the timetable, I know it isn't the way it is meant to be in third year but this works out easier for me to keep track of. Hope you liked the Hermione and McGonagall confrontation! I think I am slowly going to have little parts like that throughout so we can see how others see things or what is happening for other characters. One thing to note is that the new core-four as I've started calling them are far from perfect and have extreme flaws that you may not like about them. As I mentioned before, from the end of fourth-year onwards things will be getting more dark and violent. I've got another Harry potter story idea in my head that I may start planning to write when this story is nearly over, one in which Hermione and Ron are actually not annoying. We finally have Harry interacting with the new group!**

 **EDIT - 20/12/18 - Changed the bit with Hermione breaking off her friendship with Harry as it seemed to rushed and forced in the original update.**

 **Please follow/fave/review!**


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